I was going to talk about about my younger children's athleticism (we spent a half hour tossing the old car keys around, without actually catching them once). But I JUST this moment got an email from one of my regular contributors -- Anonymous -- expressing dissatisfaction with an earlier post where I talked about favorite words in the language. My list ran something like ... hang on and I'll check it .... okay, here we go: LOVE, BABY, HOME, WINNER, HOLIDAY, FOREVER. The word objected to was the last one. FOREVER, my commenter commented, was far from paradisal -- in fact it was a horrible word.
I forgot my and my kids' chances for the Hall of Fame. Should I stand by my list?
Well, the quick answer is, Meh. I was in a hurry. Maybe I should have added ZOWIE or SHAZAAM or NOT GUILTY. I'm open to criticism, and I can see how thoughts of eternity could be oppressive. It's not hard to make a case for Death being a gift, freeing us from this prison of imperfection and pain. Not exactly a feel-good thought, and I rather pride myself on my ability to deliver angst-free moments here ... but I'm brave right now (it's after diner and I'm full of $14.00 Chilean courage) and I'm prepared to address issues beyond easy laughter.
So, eternity. Okay, there, Anonymous. But where do you go instead? There's a lot of precedent for the view that forever is essentially a good thing. Wedding vows attempt to get us to commit for as long as you both shall live. In fairy tales the noble couple tend to live happily ever after. ( And they lived happily for a while, and when romance started to fade they decided to start dating other royalty, just doesn't sound like much of an ending) . There's a sense of permanence, stability, about Forever. A Forever guy would be someone you could count on. (Come on, now. ) A Forever car would be something I for one would buy in a minute. (It'd be great not to have to worry about Forever replacement parts.) Who wants to be Best Friends Until The Next One Comes Along (great! a BFUTNOCA bracelet) Who wants a battery that calls itself: Occasionally? God didn't promise that there wouldn't be too many more floods. He said never again. He's a Forever guy.
I don't know, Anonymous. I'm going to stick with my choice for now. It may be the effects of the wine, but I'm feeling in need of a little Forever right about now. Of course, Zowie would be good too.
6 comments:
4 Ever
Forever is a word in the english language that is hopeful even to the ultimate cynical pessimist.
Forever like other "good" f words goes hand in hand with: faith, fortitude, fortune, fanfare, friend, fairy, full, fearless, fantastic, fabulous......semantics falls not on fact nor fiction
...........words aren't fixated on anything tangible ....
which leads me to hope that forever........
is a word when read or said that buoys many an "anonymous" person....through life.
Sometimes, it's a written word or two, that bolsters our spirits...
Perhaps, forever never ends up meaning eternity but it's a word filled with levity ...what the world needs more of.....
Peace, forever and believe,
Anonymous #2 (TBA )
Well, hello to you Anonymous #2. Delighted to see someone caring. Forever is certainly a "big" word. Mind you, I still think that we can use some zowie as well.RS
Zowie! What a fun discussion and here I thought "giggles" would be my word - or one of them.
Although I agree with Anon2, that words aren't "fixated on anything tangible", forever is an adverb and implies an attachment to something. It says something about the person what they attach to it, kinda like peeking at their book shelves. The question is, what do you choose to attach to forever?
That would be another of my favourite words. Choice. But then that implies I know what I'm doing; that I'm in control of choosing even what's 'good'. How silly of me.
Zowie! Just makes me giggle.
Cath
Came across this hand embrodiered pillow at Pioneer Village that read :
Choose Thy Love
And
Love Thy Choice
Forever, choice and attachment are all based on emotionality more than reality.
Maybe the happily ever after Disney endings aren't the be all and end all. And maybe in real life, "the End" is a new beginning in disguise until the "real" end which is our last breath.
Gilda Radner came up with this brilliant quote about endings. Except I can't recall it now. But I did see it on a fridge magnet.
If I remember it , I will post it.
Refrigerator art: calendars, coupons, reminders, bills, notices....like book spines..tell a lot about a person too!
Anon. #2
Thanks to a quick search on google I found Gilda's words of wisdom:
(which in some ways might shed some light on "forever-ness")
"..some stories do not have a clear beginning, middle and end...life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what's going to happen next. Delicious ambiguity."
Anon#2
Thoughtful stuff, folks. Bookshelves certainly tell you things, as do cd collections and wall art. I wonder about frig stuff, though -- I have a bunch of old notes to buy things and call people, and some outdated kid art. Is that really me? I dunno about the word choice, either. That's often a way to make me freeze up. Pasta or beef, the flight attendant asks, and I pause, and pause, and the guy beside me says he'll have the beef. Thanks, I say, and order the pasta. RS
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