Every Christmas, I recite to my family a section of the Franklins Tale from Chaucer's, The Canterbury Tales. It speaks of the sense of family and the poor weather and dim gray sky of the northern latitudes, made pleasant by company and the Yule fire. With a modern translation:
1245 Phebus wax old, and hewed lyk laton,
Phoebus grew old, and colored grayish silver,
1246 That in his hoote declynacion
That in his hot declination (in summer)
1247 Shoon as the burned gold with stremes brighte;
Shone like burnished gold with bright rays;
1248 But now in Capricorn adoun he lighte,
But now in Capricorn he alights down,
1249 Where as he shoon ful pale, I dar wel seyn.
Where he shone full pale, I dare well say.
1250 The bittre frostes, with the sleet and reyn,
The bitter frosts, with the sleet and rain,
1251 Destroyed hath the grene in every yerd.
Have destroyed the green in every garden.
1252 Janus sit by the fyr, with double berd,
Janus sits by the fire, with double beard,
1253 And drynketh of his bugle horn the wyn;
And drinks the wine from his buffalo horn;
1254 Biforn hym stant brawen of the tusked swyn,
Before him stands meat of the tusked boar,
1255 And "Nowel" crieth every lusty man.
And "Noel" cries every lusty man.
Merry Christmas to one and all. I hope we all have a fabulous new year.
Ron
1245 Phebus wax old, and hewed lyk laton,
Phoebus grew old, and colored grayish silver,
1246 That in his hoote declynacion
That in his hot declination (in summer)
1247 Shoon as the burned gold with stremes brighte;
Shone like burnished gold with bright rays;
1248 But now in Capricorn adoun he lighte,
But now in Capricorn he alights down,
1249 Where as he shoon ful pale, I dar wel seyn.
Where he shone full pale, I dare well say.
1250 The bittre frostes, with the sleet and reyn,
The bitter frosts, with the sleet and rain,
1251 Destroyed hath the grene in every yerd.
Have destroyed the green in every garden.
1252 Janus sit by the fyr, with double berd,
Janus sits by the fire, with double beard,
1253 And drynketh of his bugle horn the wyn;
And drinks the wine from his buffalo horn;
1254 Biforn hym stant brawen of the tusked swyn,
Before him stands meat of the tusked boar,
1255 And "Nowel" crieth every lusty man.
And "Noel" cries every lusty man.
Merry Christmas to one and all. I hope we all have a fabulous new year.
Ron
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