🎢 Easy Come, Easy Go: The Elusive Nature of Quick Gains 🎭
“What is readily achieved or gained is also readily lost.”
This age-old principle emphasizes the transient nature of gains that come without much effort. With roots stretching back to ancient wisdom and literary greats, this cliché offers both a warning and a smirking acceptance of life’s fleeting rewards.
Historical Etchings
- Chuang-tsze (ca. 400 B.C.): The Chinese sage noted, “Quickly come and quickly go,” cautioning against counting on transient gains.
- Geoffrey Chaucer (The Pardoner’s Tale): “As lightly as it comth, so wol we spende.” In other words, money easily earned is also easily spent.
- John Heywood’s Proverbs (1546): “Light come, light go” traced this aphorism further, embedding it into English literature.
- 19th Century Adaptations: Eventually, ’easy’ did the switcheroo with ’lightly’ and ‘quickly,’ converting the phrase to its modern form.
Similar Expressions and Related Phrases
- “Here today, gone tomorrow.”
- “Win some, lose some.”
- “Easy win, easy loss.”
- “Easy pickings fade away.”
- “Ephemeral as morning dew.”
Thesaurus Watch
- Synonyms: Temporary, fleeting, transient, momentary.
- Antonyms: Permanent, lasting, enduring, long-term.
Proverbs That Mirror the Sentiment
- **“Fortune easily won is rarely held.” **
- “The higher you climb, the harder you fall.”
In Popular Culture
Books to Explore:
- Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut – touches on fate and the unpredictability of life.
- Catch-22 by Joseph Heller – another fine example of the absurdity of circumstances and fickle fortune.
Songs to Set the Mood:
- “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen (“Easy come, easy go, will you let me go?”).
- “Free Fallin’” by Tom Petty (“It’s a long day, livin’ in Reseda. There’s a freeway, runnin’ through the yard…”).
Movies and Series:
- Forrest Gump – A rollercoaster of life’s whims and fortunes.
- Mad Men – The rise and fall of fortunes in the advertising world.
### Which of these phrases fits the idiom "Easy come, easy go"?
- [x] Here today, gone tomorrow
- [ ] Running with scissors
- [ ] Cooking up a storm
- [ ] Flying like a pancake
> **Explanation:** "Here today, gone tomorrow" mirrors the idea that something easily achieved can just as easily vanish.
### Identify another way to say "Easy come, easy go":
- [ ] Hard-earned is long kept
- [ ] Catching lightning in a bottle
- [ ] Ephemeral as morning dew
- [x] Win some, lose some
> **Explanation:** "Win some, lose some" closely aligns in spirit and meaning with "Easy come, easy go".
### True or False: "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen includes the line "Easy come, easy go."
- [x] True
- [ ] False
> **Explanation:** True! The iconic song by Queen includes "Easy come, easy go" as part of its reflective and patchwork narrative.
Parting Thoughts 💭
The playful dance of gains and losses echoes through time, reminding us to be a bit more present and a little less attached to fleeting extras. As you navigate through the twists and turns, may we remember:
“To savor the wins, accept the losses, and always cherish the journey.”
—Literally Larry, October 2023
