Old Word Series (2)

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Photo by M.A.D.

While I was rereading The Royal Path of Life by T.L. Haines A.M./L.W. Yaggy M.S., it occurred to me that there were many words that we don’t see much in books today. Many of them I understood by just rereading the sentence and focusing on the context, but other words I had to look up. This aroused my curiosity, and I thought it would be a good idea to share some of these words and the meaning in a series of posts.

The Royal Path of Life was written in 1876; I own a revised edition (1884). What I love about this book besides the engraved leather binding, gilded title, and gorgeous woodcuts illustrations is the common sense and wisdom found throughout its pages which bleed of the way of living of the times. Here are six words I found interesting. Many words today are derivatives, and many of these old words are obsolete.

From Merriam-Webster and OED

Macademize – To construct or finish (a road) by compacting into a solid mass a layer of small broken stone on a convex well-drained roadbed and using a binder. First known use 1823. Used after John Louden McAdam (1756-1836), civil engineer, pioneer of this method.

Bespattered (bespatter) – Spatter. Synonyms – dash, spatter, splatter, plash, splash. First known use in 1602. I could not find the etymology of this word.

Bedimmed (bedim) – To make less bright. To make indistinct. First known use 1565. From dim, Germanic, Old English.

Trifles (trifle) – Something of little value, substance, or importance. First known use 14th century. Middle English period. From Anglo French.

Irksome – Tedious. First known use 15th century. Formed within English by derivation.

Timorous – Of a timid disposition. Fearful. First known use 15th century. Middle English. From Medieval Latin (timorous), from Latin (timor).

Some of these words, one can make up the meaning, especially when they are close to Latin or Spanish (if you speak the language), for example, timorous. I hope you enjoyed these interesting words.

Life’s Lemons

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For the purpose of this post, I will use an allegory. Ever heard the saying, “If life gives you lemons, make lemonade?” It is certainly a positive outlook, but many people see the lemonade making as one time event. What if you are tiered of life’s lemons? What if you are just tired of making lemonade? What if you just don’t care about making any more lemonade because you are just not up to it anymore? Life is unpredictable, and some of us don’t get one or two lemons, we get an entire orchard. Life is not fair, and maybe, by now you are just tired of making lemonade and drinking it too. You have reached the point of letting these lemons rot, and you don’t even care if they stink.

Many of us have been there at one point or another, and if not, count yourself blessed and be grateful for it. Society expects people to grab the juicer and start making lemonade right away, many times in the midst of a lemon rainfall. If we don’t, we are “lacking courage” or are labeled of “too little faith,” or many other things. Many times, we are expected to bounce back at the blink of an eye, and we are bombarded with positive thinking messages and expectations, as if we are being rushed to get well and function again; it is expected. It is what people do, to bounce back from a “sour episode” as soon as possible, to keep going on, to keep on living. And that is what we want to do. Deep inside we wish that tomorrow was different as quickly as possible. It is harder when other people depend on us.

Every person is different, and we all react in similar or not too similar ways to life’s situations. The way I see it is that we know our own internal temperature; we know our life’s speed, and we know how hurt and affected we have been by an avalanche of lemons. Or maybe, one large lemon is all it takes to weaken our strength and make us doubt our own courage. Besides God, we are the only ones to know how we truly feel, how hard we did fall, and how much time until we can even stand up, much more give that first step again. We should not feel pressured by the growing line in front of our lemonade stand. If any pressure, it should be our own desire or eagerness to join the land of the happy living again.

Whether or not we are ready to make lemonade, in our terms that is, we should consider a few things. We don’t have to make lemonade right away, and we don’t have to make it alone. There are people standing in line at the lemonade stand that are willing to go behind the counter and help us make lemonade; some might even cheer us up while we try. We just have to let them know how thin and fragile our glass is at the time, so they don’t stir too fast in their eagerness to help. But most important, we have the help and love of the Creator of it all (of the lemons, the lemonade stand, the lemon-makers, the helpers …) and He is certainly waiting patiently and lovingly for us to make the sweetest lemonade of all.

Old Words Series (1)

/ inkspeare
Photo by Maria Diaz

I love to collect antique books (and writing instruments). There is some magic about these tomes. Although none of mine have great monetary value, these tomes are valuable to me. Whether for its old-fashion wisdom, their depiction of a long-gone era, rich in the culture of the time, or the way these look (material, colors, patterns used in their making …), these books are a delight for me, a gift to my senses.

While I was rereading The Royal Path of Life by T.L. Haines A.M./L.W. Yaggy M.S., it occurred to me that there were many words that we don’t see much in books today. Many of them I understood by just rereading the sentence and focusing on the context, but other words I had to look up. This aroused my curiosity, and I thought it would be a good idea to share some of these words and the meaning in a series of posts.

The Royal Path of Life was written in 1876; I own a revised edition (1884). What I love about this book besides the engraved leather binding, gilded title, and gorgeous woodcuts illustrations is the common sense and wisdom found throughout its pages which bleed of the way of living of the times. Here are five words I found interesting. Many words today are derivatives, and many of these old words are obsolete.

Sundered – to break apart or in two: separate by or as if by violence or by intervening time or space. (Merriam-Webster). Earliest known use: old English period, pre-1150. (from OED)

Cynosure – One that serves to direct or guide. A center of attraction or attention. (Merriam-Webster). Its origins are Greek, and it passed into Latin, later French, then to English. Earliest known use was in the late 1500s (OED).

Sire – Father, male ancestor, a man of rank and authority. (Merriam- Webster). From the old English pre-1150. Inherited from Germanic. Last recorded in the 1500. It is obsolete. (OED)

Sinews – I only found the word sinew, what seems to be a derivative. It means solid resilient strength, power. (Merriam-Webster). The earliest known use, early 1500. From the old English, pre-1150.

Boon – A timely benefit: blessing. Benefit favor. Favorable (archaic meaning). (Merriam-Webster). From the earliest Middle English period (1150-1500), A borrowing from the Scandinavian. (OED).

Even if we never use these words again, it is a good mental exercise, and entertaining as well. Hope you enjoy reading about these old words. Does anybody say commode anymore?

Veggie Garden Bliss

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Finally! We have been postponing working on the grape vine project or planting due to some rain. Last weekend we were able to tackle all this. We bought the necessary materials and plants, and now, everything is in place. Last year, deer ate all the grapes because the vine was intertwined on the veggie garden fence and easy to access. We cut and cleaned it up during the winter to see if we could do something that would make the vine a bit less accessible inside the veggie garden. However, the vine started to grow fast again, shooting new growth everywhere, before we could start training it, and the weather did not help. My husband came up with the idea of getting three metal stakes and wire and placing these on the ground inside the veggie garden and making four rows of wire so the vine could grow. It was a quick project and under $50. I don’t know if the deer would be able to reach it or jump the fence; I hope not. This is what it looks like.

Photo by M.A.D.

This year we are planting tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, onion, strawberries, and I still have to get a raspberry bush. The blueberries are already on their delicious way. Lettuce has already grown from seeds that fell on the ground last year. I already collected some.

Photo by M.A.D.

Overall, the garden is looking good this year, thanks to the rain we have been getting. Every year, it looks better as plants mature. We trimmed some bushes, moved some plants around, and repotted other. We added some fresh mulch, cleaned up the sitting areas, and replaced some chairs. Aside for cleaning and repainting the grill (we had to wait for the birds to leave the nest inside), we are ready to welcome Summer. We have a few projects planned already; I will share some here.

Finding My Way Back, an Update (and books and roses)

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Finding my way back to my book in progress, The Girl Who Could Not Love, hasn’t been easy. I stopped. I tried. I stopped once more. I had to put it aside for some time despite wanting to continue writing it. Something was not right. It lay dormant, and eventually, I knew I had to come back to it. It has been on my mind all this time, morning, night, and in between; however, distant, but calling me. It is the book that begs to be written to a hesitant writer that has finally surrender to it. Whether to answer the call or not, is not important anymore; it is why. Why is this story haunting me? Why the fight between pen and heart? Why do I want to write this story? Why won’t the story quit? Why won’t I quit?

While reading Never Too Late (or was it Shine On? I read them back-to-back) by Claire Cook, I thought about something she mentioned. It is to ask yourself in the reinvention journey, but in her case while writing a book, what stands in the way of my protagonist? I asked that question about my novel, and my protagonist. The answer, me. I was standing in the way. So, I had to ask myself the question, and I got my deep-rooted answer. I am working on it.

In the meantime, I have been reading up a storm, some of which are these. I am currently reading It’s Rising Time by Kim Kiyosaki. I am enjoying this book very much. I like the writing style of Kim Kiyosaki; it is straight and to the point. So far, I think that this is a book that every woman should read. Next on the agenda is Life Glows On by Claire Cook. Her non-fiction books are straight from the heart and fueled by her experience, as a woman who reinvented herself.

Photo by M.A.D.
Photo by M.A.D.

The garden always calls this time of the year. About two years ago, I planted two tiny rose bushes. One of them, the red rose bush, has grown considerably when compared to the other, a pink rose bush. I planted these at the same time, and they have grown under similar conditions. Both were labeled miniature rose bushes. Just as people, they continue to grow at a different pace. Just like writer’s stories, they bloom and develop at different stages.

To the left, near the duck, the pink rose bush, and on the right, the red rose bush. Photo by M.A.D.
Red rose bush. Miniature? Not so much, but spectacular. Photo by M.A.D.

Miniature or not, both rose bushes have their own enchantment.

Perfect Timing

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Although we had a mild winter, for some reason, it feels a long one. We had a bit of a cool down this week, and even frost overnight. I am glad that I did not jump ahead and planted any veggies, otherwise the timing would have been wrong.

In life, perfect timing seems to be an important issue, more than money or drive. How many times people have had all the money and resources, but it was just not the “right time?” Whatever the project or venture, it did not come to fruition. Immediately, we tend to label it as failure, and even label ourselves as such. What was important for us were results. We forget quickly about the journey, all the effort, work, and focus we put into a project. As if that doesn’t count at all. We only see that we failed. Simply put, results were more important than the journey itself. By disregarding our journey, we forget the lessons learned, and sometimes, the lesson is more important than the result we were hoping for, but we fail to see it because we are too focused on the outcome. After all, we labor hard for something, right? Most people do. We trade something for something else. Time for money, money for things … In the meantime, we forget all that we learned, and how it shaped us. Because we are so conditioned to trade something for something, when we trade our hard work and effort, our mental focus, even emotional energy, and something does not materialize at the end, we blame and label ourselves as failure, and even punish ourselves deep in our hearts. We end up feeling frustrated, tired, lost, and another mental game starts. We think that there must be something wrong with us because we start comparing ourselves to others who have obtained the results we wanted and worked so hard, even sacrificed for, but never materialized. Once we jump into that rollercoaster, our self-esteem is (naturally) going to suffer; then, our trust and believe in ourselves are lost.

What is perfect timing? Many define it as being in the right place at the right time, other people as a kiss from Lady Luck. I define it as learning to be quiet enough that I can see the picture, appreciate the lesson, and wait for the direction that God has for me. I view perfect timing as God’s timing, separate from my human perception of how things should be and end. Learning that has made a difference in my life and how I define success and failure. Perfect timing is God’s speed.

Faith Moves Mountains

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Faith moves mountains. Jesus said that (Matthew 17:20). It is truth for Christians, or it should. Why is it so hard to believe what seems impossible? Maybe because of our human nature. We tend to focus on the problem more than the outcome. Faith is defined as “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1) That seems to go against our human nature, yet we have all the capacity for hope and conviction. It is in our darkest hour that we put that truth to the test. Our mountain suddenly seems insurmountable compared to our conviction at the moment; however, hope can only grow, and grow bigger than a mountain. Our assurance doesn’t come from our own human effort, but from the One who said that a little faith moves mountains.

“Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew 17:20-21

Whatever our mountain, let’s climb it with hope and conviction, eventually, it won’t be in our field of vision; it would have moved from the horizon.

The Passing of Time

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Photo by M.A.D.

It is a rainy day. As I sit in my favorite chair, I glance at the cedar trees that line up the driveway. They dance gently in the wind. The trees have grown so tall since the first time I saw them, back then, when we looked at the property. They were at most, three feet tall, growing wild and free. We considered getting rid of them to open up more land, but my love of pine trees convinced me to keep them all, and I am glad we did, because now, I can look at these trees and smile. They are so lovely, most of them towering over 25 feet, a testament to the passing of time.

I used to think that time is just human invention, human perception to guide humanity throughout the days while living in a material world. In a way, it is true; however, time is more than that. Nature speaks of it “all the time” throughout the seasons, the harvest, the growth of anything and everything on earth. Throughout the journey that each one of us sets on. Time is the silent keeper of our days. One has only to look outside, especially now that winter has given way to spring, and see how the landscape changes daily. Have you ever been amazed at how fast the trees grow their leaves? As if overnight.

The miracle of life throughout the eyes of time. Time becomes more precious when we don’t have enough of it. Youth doesn’t mind the passing of time in the same way, unless life depends on it. In late golden years, time becomes precious, almost borrowed, a divine gift of sorts. It takes on a different meaning; it becomes the friend and foe of life, a duality that only a soul who has lived well comprehends, while finding peace in that knowledge. The eternity of time suddenly seems to dissolve; it has a beginning and end.

Has Independent Publishing on Amazon Lost Its Allure?

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Photo by M.A.D.

Has self-publishing on Amazon lost its allure? I have asked myself the question, and I honestly think that it has become a non-monitored farm where the cows run amok, and the farmer is too busy to do it all. The amount of crap (content without any creative effort just for the sake of making a quick buck) that has been published over time is nothing compared to the amount of low content books that plague the site. Low content books are defined as “books” that have minimal content/text, are repetitive or contain templates, blank pages, or a simple design/drawing. Examples are coloring books, notebooks, journals … Although there are many of these items that have been created with much care, creativity, and offer value to the customer, and that is a legitimate endeavor, there is another type of low content that does not follow the guidelines, and the creator has not made an effort to make the product legitimate. It does not have any valuable or substantial content for the customer. This type of low content takes up a lot of real estate on Amazon, and it is being published at a fast rate, thus “clogging up” Amazon. The problem is the product that does not offer anything to the user and is created without any creative care or thought-out intent. These self-publishers only focus on quantity vs quality and are there to sell as many low-content books to make fast money.

Legitimate authors are paying the price having to navigate the dirty waters that are flooding prime real estate. Although Amazon is making efforts and intensifying the review process, as well as removing non-compliant books, the flood gates have been open for a while. This will be a long and continuous effort, and hopefully, will alleviate part of the problem. I say part of the problem because there are many other issues in the future, if not now, such as AI generated “books” or content from legitimate authors that might have been manipulated and rebranded, and of course, there has always been content on public domain that can be published by anyone. As you can imagine this takes up prime real estate on Amazon.

So, has independent publishing on Amazon lost its allure for legitimate authors? Well, the answer to that might depend on the answer to other questions: Has publishing on Amazon lost prestige? Is Amazon too crap-saturated? Has Amazon hurt legitimate authors by allowing this type of content? Will the traditional publishing industry say, “I told you so?” The questions are many. Self-publishing continues to evolve, hand in hand with technology, and no one knows what the future holds, even for the big giant. I guess that for now, I’ll take it one book at a time.

Long Gone Are the Days

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Photo by MAD

The other day, I was minding my daily grind and an idea for a new novel came to mind, a good one, I thought. The idea presented itself as the beginning and ending of the story, nothing in between. I was busy, so I decided to write it down later on. Later on never came, and the whole idea went out of my mind; I simply cannot remember it. When it is gone, it is gone for good. This is something that I find happens more often as I age. Before, in my younger years, I would put the thought or idea on pause, and come back to it later. Not so anymore. That is why now it has to be written when it presents itself, otherwise it is lost forever, and forever is a long time.

As we age, our memory is a bit less reliable than it was in our younger years. We are not as quick and sharp as we used to be, and that happens to every person, to some more than others. After researching this topic for my own benefit, I decided to write this post. No matter how old we are, it is good to exercise the mind just as we exercise the body. It is common knowledge that exercising the body improves the mind function, and so does eating a healthy diet; so is leaving habits like smoking, alcohol, drugs, sugar …. Beyond that, what can a person do to improve brain function? Getting enough sleep and rest is another item in the commonsense bucket. Aside from those mentioned above, experts recommend social contact, mental activities that exercise the brain such as word puzzles, painting, drawing, manual dexterity activities, reading, jigsaw puzzles, learning something new … Eating nuts and seeds seems to be beneficial, and so is my favorite treat, dark chocolate. There are other foods that appear to boost your brain, and vitamins such as B6, B9, B12, are also beneficial. Some supplements are specific to brain health, and there is difference of opinion about that. Meditation and keeping a diary seem to help as well. All of the above things I do already, although I have to work on the “sweet tooth” a bit more.

All this information most of us know it by heart; it has been repeated over and over. I find that most times, I forget things when I am on automatic pilot and not being mindful of what I am doing. When I pay attention and focus on what is at hand, I feel more alert and conscious, even organized and with less brain fog. I guess use it or lose it is appropriate in this case. Long gone are the days.