Deeds of men are remembered and cherished after death. Whether men of deeds pass away in the present age or hundreds of years back, rarely have men conferred honour to the living. Its seems like all recognition comes after death.
The other day I was reading about Cicero (3rd January, 106 BC – 7th December, 43 BC) who was a Roman philosopher, lawyer, political theorist and statesman. He was able to do many different things at the same time. He introduced the Romans to the many schools of Greek philosophy. He created a Latin philosophical vocabulary. He was recognized as the best linguist, translator, and philosopher of his time. He was an extraordinary orator and a very successful lawyer.
He lived under the dictatorship of Julius Caesar. But he was opposed to the tyrannical rule of Caesar and after the latter's assassination was also opposed to his successor, Octavian. He was never in friendly terms with Mark Antony. Later he was hunted, slewed, beheaded and his hands were cut off for writing against Mark Antony. It was also said that Antony's wife Fulvia took Cicero's head, pulled out his tongue, and jabbed it repeatedly with her hairpin in final revenge against Cicero's power of speech.
Octavian many years later would come upon one of his grandsons reading a book by Cicero. The boy tried to hide the book, fearing the wrath of his grandfather. Octavian, now called Augustus, took the book from his grandson, read a part of it, and then handed the volume back, saying: "He was a learned man, dear child, a learned man who loved his country".
C'est la vie....
Cheers_______
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