Like the lamenting Oud song floating over dunes 
Like the scent of tears 
Like the cascade of water lost to the desert 
Like the lake of broken hearts 
Like the shattered statues of ancient heroes 
Like Heracles shouldering Poseidon's rage 
Like the still life still alive in still evenings
Like the slowly collapsing night 
Like the drunken fool in slapstick fall 
Like the sting of a smacked cheek 
Like the branding of insulted honour 
Like the marketing of shining technology 
Like the newest new ahead of the followers.

Peter O’Toole, British stage and screen actor, was born today in 1932.

Thomas Gainsborough, English painter, died on this day in 1788.