Rubaiyat of Austin P. Torney

An extension of Omar Khayyam's Rubayiat into modern times, illustrated on every other page. The Rubaiyat stuck a chord in me which was already resonating to Omar's frequency, so, I wrote my own. Somehow, inexplicably, the verses came to me as I lived through all the experiences described therein-for I dared not write of any philosophies which had not been tried and proven. My quatrains, like Omar's, aim into the heart of life's dilemmas, offering simple common sense solutions. In this hectic, complicated world of ours we often forget that it is the simple things in life that are still the most enjoyable and inexpensive-for, everyone dies, but not everyone lives.The spirit of Omar's Persia-fume has reached me, across the centuries, as he had hoped it might, and has overtaken me unawares, inspiring me to live and write, in that order.