Affected by Aphorisms

There must be a reason I forgot the meaning.  Is it my advancing age or my declining memory?  Or is it because I never wrote about aphorisms in six years of blogging?

“An aphorism is a short, pithy statement containing a truth of general import.”  – dictionary.com

"Aphorisms can sometimes be humorous, but are not necessarily so. They often have some parallelism or juxtaposition to make the point, such as in the example of Lord Acton’s famous quote 'Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.'

Common Examples of Aphorism:

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. –Lao Tzu

A rolling stone gathers no moss.

Better safe than sorry.

Early to bed, early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.

Every cloud has a silver lining.”

– literarydevices.com

As I view them, the writings of William Shakespeare (1564-1616, Stratford-upon-Avon) are richly aphoristic.  (See Romeo and Juliet.)

Now I recall being affected by aphorisms in grade school and later in life.  Some helped me gain wisdom and inspiration along the way.  Others just tickled my funny bone to help me bear life’s burdens.

I could add more examples and explore the importance of aphorisms, but you can take it from here.  Remember, “Life's tragedy is that we get old too soon and wise too late.”  – Benjamin Franklin 
(Thanks to brainyquote.com)

a wise grandson fishing for fun in UT

granddaughter wisely loving literature and music in AZ

Let the Sunshine

As I opened our wood blinds on the home front to let sunshine in this morning, I caught myself singing à la The Fifth Dimension ("Aquarius" 1969).

Google defines the preposition, à la: 
"(of a dish) cooked or prepared in a specified style or manner.

(informal:) in the style or manner of."

“Aquarius / Let the Sunshine In”

"…

Harmony and understanding

Sympathy and trust abounding

No more falsehoods or derisions

…

Let the sunshine, let the sunshine in, the sunshine in”

– google.com

Although I don’t follow astrology, I love the upbeat music for soaking up sunshine and feeling "safe and warm ... on such a winter's day" 
(à la The Mamas & the Papas, 1965).

Wishing you (in cold weather) joyous sunshine this month,

and a little healthy fast food.

grandson at our frontier home, snowed in (26 Dec 2016)

The Truth Is, ...

This came to mind two days ago as I heard a devotional talk by BYU President Kevin J Worthen; he spoke about absolute truth.  Years ago, I decided to quit using the common phrase, “To be honest, …” and instead say, “The truth is, ...”  If I’m maybe dishonest sometimes, and honest other times when I qualify a statement as “honest”, what does that imply?  Anything I say otherwise may be suspect.  One might see only a slight distinction here, but it's significant to me.

Admittedly, I use Google Search and Wikipedia a lot, well aware that they are not always trustworthy sources of truth.  I chuckled when Pres. Worthen quipped, referring to the New Testament epistle (1:5), “James did not say, ‘If any of you lack wisdom, let him Google.’ …  Sometimes we can't make it all add up, because we don't have all the numbers."  As a student of math, I liked that too.

In a CES broadcast for young-adult students, January 2013, a talk entitled "What Is Truth?" was given by Dieter F. Uchtdorf of the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  Reading it for the first time, I see it as a classic, inspired discourse.  He told the familiar story of “The Blind Men and the Elephant” with this introduction: “Well over one hundred years ago, an American poet put to rhyme an ancient parable.”  Concluding the poem, he said, “I suppose the reason this story has remained so popular in so many cultures and over so many years is because of its universal application. The Apostle Paul said that in this world the light is dim and we see only part of the truth as though we are looking ‘through a glass, darkly.’ And yet it seems to be part of our nature as human beings to make assumptions about people, politics, and piety based on our incomplete and often misleading experience.”

Typical of the former airline pilot, President Uchtdorf went on to state a fact, then use analogy:

"The thing about truth is that it exists beyond belief. It is true even if nobody believes it.

We can say west is north and north is west all day long and even believe it with all our heart, but if, for example, we want to fly from Quito, Ecuador, to New York City in the United States, there is only one direction that will lead us there, and that is north—west just won’t do.

Of course, this is just a simple aviation analogy. However, there is indeed such a thing as absolute truth—unassailable, unchangeable truth.  …  I bless you with confidence in the Lord and a deep-rooted desire to rightfully discern truth from error—now and throughout your life."

– lds.org/broadcasts/article/ces-devotionals/2013/01/...

The truth is, Kay and I know it is true, and hope our children and grandchildren do too.

Kay watching wildlife at Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve (2 June 2014)

Our quiet walk with sunlight in the Sacred Grove, New York (12 June 2010)

Excess? Lack? Words

Texting, instant messaging ("IM" or "IMing"), Facebook Chat, Email, voicemail, talk radio, advertising, talking heads on TV, "news" and sports with analysis ad infinitum.

Would an economy of words this year provide any balance to the excess?  I value quiet time to think.  On the other hand, folks need more meaningful dialogue and real conversation. You've probably seen a group of close friends ... not talking, just looking down at their smartphones.

I often face a dearth of words to write ... thank-you notes and letters, for example.  However, some think I write too much and labor too little.

So I see both excess and shortage.  What's new under the sun?  (Ecclesiastes 1:9)

Seaside Oregon 2012

Fast Forward to 2017

Just for the record, it was a very different year for Kay and me, as usual. Our one-page family newsletter shared the synopsis; (can make more copies to meet a demand).

Year-end fireworks in the foggy distance.  (When we were young, we just banged pans on the back porch at midnight to celebrate New Year's.)

TV in the other room – anything extraordinary?

Wearing my orange Stihl ear protectors while vacuuming – symbolic of how I blocked out most political talk in 2016.

A sweet repeat of Christmas choir music with David Archuleta – my own reward for cleaning floors.

"Happy New Year from Google!" – a timely, personal greeting from our go-to search engine.

What more can I say this year?  Just that I wanted to end with a fast note ... for the record.

"Grow old with me ... the best is yet to be ..."

Old Year Passes

Our halls are still decked as "fast away the old year passes ...".

Maybe some things should pass, too ... for thrift-store shoppers to treasure and enjoy in the New Year.  I can be content with memories and digital photos safely archived (pics, that is – not so sure about my memory).  And it always does my heart good to share useful stuff with others.  In fact, this year I suggested free yard sales, like barter ("synonyms: trade, swap, exchange" – G.) ... e.g., "they bartered VHS tapes for PVC pipe" – I can do that. So far, no one seems interested, like they're set with all the used stuff they will ever need.  Unbelievable.  However, I understand Kay's thinking (at my age) we actually need to get rid of some, not just trade.  (Time to read Walden and Marie's magic tidiness again to feel joy next year.  But not on this lunch break.)

How can I part with this useful beauty?  (JVC audio tape deck from DI)
Sad to say, "They don't build 'em like they used to."

Last year, a family member said this was out of style.  But it still keeps me warm!

Ned saving daughter's art and maintaining grandkids' basement playground

A favorite VHS discarded, only because it broke

Go figure!

This isn't all – we have more books to go.

Year-end Statements

Our years go 'bye with simple statements such as these:

"Thanks To All Who Served" in our military!

Lights at Prescott AZ, 26 December 2015

"Merry Christmas! with love, Ned & Kay"

Kay's Potato Soup mix etc. gifts to go 2015

"Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!"
(No worries – kids' spills are easy to clean up.)
Entertaining with trusty old table for twelve, 12 Dec 2011

"Stay focused for a few days till Christmas!"

Favorite high school English teacher, 16 Dec 2015

Take the time together, and keep each other warm – it's worth it!

Winter stop at Grand Canyon, sunset for two, 30 Dec 2014

May this week be a memorable end, anticipating a
new beginning!