Perspective

N. - the art of picturing objects so as to show their relative distance or depth.

There are four different definitions of perspective according to the Webster's New World Dictionary, yet the latter three are merely the application of the first, which is the one I've begun this post with, in various fields or situations.

This drawing form rourkevisualart.com is the type of thing we think of as perspective in art.

Depth on a two dimensional surface. Sometimes the effect is such that we're not quiet sure what the "trick" is.

Is this giant coke bottle from rense.com a photographic trick or a really good chalk drawing? Yet there are other pictures that present a perspective that you know are impossible. Such as Echner's Waterfall

Perspective also describes how we see events in life, and they often fall into one of the above categories: seemingly three dimensional but obviously not real, obviously not really but unsure where the error is, or obviously not real yet seemingly true.

Perspectives can have a lasting affect on the thing or person we are viewing. So before making a decision based only on your perspective, you might want to evaluate your perspective to make sure it is accurate.

Pabulum

Have you ever encountered a word of which you could not begin to guess the meaning? Is the word for this week one such word for you? It was for me.

This is a very nice and not too old of a word - it was first used in 1733.

What does it mean? Food. Specifically, a suspension or solution of nutrients in a state suitable for absorption. It can also be intellectual sustenance. Or, it can be something (as writing or speech) that is insipid, simplistic, or bland.

Theses are the type of things I visualize about when I think about intellectual sustenance.

Books. Old books with yellowing paper are what I specifically think about. All that knowledge just sitting there waiting to be discovered. Delicious.

This week my Advanced Composition class has been discussing the future of these icons of knowledge. Will the book one day become a relic like scrolls? Will everything be digital? The knowledge is still the same, of course. However, the experience is different. There is something much less personal about my iPad than my 1865 edition of Longfellow poetry.

Beyond the structure, are the books being produced really intellectually nourishing? Nutritionists will tell you that you are made of what you eat - literally. So what about your thoughts? How much about what you think and who you are is effected by what you read? Are you what you read?

So are you nourishing your mind? Is the "food" good? What will you be like after the next "meal" you eat?

I hope this blog was pabulum (definition 2) and not pabulum (definition 3).

Gratitude

N. - thankful appreciation for favors or benefits received.

I know why I was thinking of gratitude this week; I mean that is what every American should be thinking of the week before Thanksgiving - right?

We get excited about seeing family members who we may have only heard about since last November. Our mouths water at the thought of the food that is served only on this day. We are thankful, but what are we grateful for? What are the favors and benefits that we have received over the year?

Many families include a time of reflecting on what each member is thankful for during the day's feast. But is thankfulness different than gratitude? They are synonyms, but I point out to my students that no two words mean exactly the same thing. I think it has to do with action.

We express thankfulness for things that just are, but gratitude is appreciation for a specific favor or benefit we have received. This is harder then it sounds. Just try saying something other than, "my family" when someone this week asks you what you are grateful for. Dig. Get specific. You will find that you have more to be grateful for than you first thought. Gratitude Journal

Stereotype

Everyone knows what a stereotype is, right? Or do we?
Stereotypes are always bad, right? Or are they?

Stereotype is a lovely word with parts. The first part, prefix, comes from the New Latin as is actually stere-. This is not the same as stereo in regard to hearing form two sources. This prefix means solid or solid body. Understanding this changes our view of stereotype slightly because now we see that its intended meaning was to be a solid type. So what is a type?

There are many definitions for type, but two of the more interesting ones relate to our word study. A type can be a person or thing believed to foreshadow another person or thing. This meaning often relates to various things in the Old Testament of the Bible as they related to various things in the New Testament of the Bible. The second definition is even closer to home: a typical and often superior specimen.

So a stereotype is a solid representation or a solid typical specimen or a solid example or a solid. This does not sound too bad. So why the negative connotation? These two word parts were not put together to explain people but to give a name to a new thing. The think was a metal plate cast (or made) form a printing surface. It was a solid example. It was unchangeable.

This is great for printing, but no so good for people. Becoming aware of our stereotypes and evaluating their effect on us is vital if we are going to make any kind of a significant impact on helping others.

Sites such as Cultural Savvy can help you learn how to identify your stereotypes.

Belay

Today was my first adventure at rock climbing. Now I must admit that I only climbed twice; this was actually a treat for a friend. I felt good climbing but was much more comfortable on the ground belaying. Not sure what belaying is? Yeah. It is what the person on the ground does that doesn't look all that important or hard.

To belay is first a verb which means to secure by turns around a pin, to make fast, to stop, to secure at the end of a rope, to secure to a person or object. It also means to be made fast, to stop or quit. The word can also be used as a noun. In this form it means the securing of a person or a safety rope to an anchor point or something to which a person or rope is anchored. (Definitions from Merriam-Webster dictionary.)

In the climbing that we were doing I was not just belaying, I was the belay. My friend was anchored to me! It was an interesting thought that I was her security. I suppose there is a machine that could do the job, but this is something that humans do for each other. That made me think of how important it is to have a belay, an anchor point, a person who helps to keep you grounded.

So being a belay is important, but it still does not look very hard. Well look at these hands. (This photo is from Earthworks Climbing School blog.)

Belaying is not easy. My hands don't look like this, but they are sore, as are my arms and my back. Yet as I think about the security that I provided for my friend, I realize that the aches and pains are worth it.

Now I think about the aches and pains we suffer as we belay for people in life. It you are someone's belay it will cost you a bit of discomfort, but isn't it worth it to help them climb to new heights. And remember, you trust in a belay to help you climb to new heights, too. An the view from the top - breath-taking.

Endurance

Does anyone really like the word endurance? Endured maybe, for it indicates that the experience is over. But endurance is hard. You keep with something just because you must, you should, or you want to. No matter the reason you are digging in when so much seems to say, "Quit!"

 Several years ago my school decided that the lobby of the girls' dorm should be tiled. The materials were purchased and some of the teachers became students. How do you lay tile? We endured pulling up the carpet, the easiest part of the entire process. Then came scraping up the glue, tile needs a smooth surface. Everyone displayed endurance, for the glue would not come up. But it had to come up. There was no choice. So we scraped. Finally, we could lay tile.We stooped and scraped and spread (our math teacher in the picture gained a new respect for surface area). Endurance was again called for. I cut tile, then re-cut tile.

Just as we began to think that we would never stand straight again, we finished. We had endured. It is such a sweet experience to enter that lobby now. All the enduring past, now there is just the "fruits of our labor".

What enduring right now?

Glib

I love words. Often I come across new words and don't have time to look them up, and then when I have the time, I've forgotten the word I heard. Other times I hear a word again for the first time and realize that I don't really know what the word means. This week it was glib. Do you know what it means without looking it up?

According to Merriam-Webster, glib means the following: 1a: marked by ease and informality, 1b: showing little forethought or preparation, 1c: lacking depth and substance; 2: smooth, slippery; 3: marked by ease and fluency in speaking or writing often to the point of being insincere or deceitful.

It is the last bit of the definition that surprised me. Ease and informality don't sound too bad. Don't we want to communicate with others in a easy, carefree sort of way. To an extent, that is the reason for a blog to begin with - an more informal way to communicate without being totally formless (twitter). But the last bit - "to be point of being insincere or deceitful." How easy is it to fall into that hole when you are trying to be easy going. Must all preparation or depth be thrown to the wind? Can a person truly be easy going even if they have prepared, or is that like women who spend hours (literally) on their hair in an effort to make it look like they haven't done anything with their hair. Is planned ease always insincere? Is planned ease in communication really possible?

I'm not sure if this post is glib or not. Just some thoughts and ideas about a fun word (some words are just more fun to say than others).

Oh, as a point of trivia, glib was first used in English in 1584.

Expectations

I don't remember how old I was when I read Charles Dickens' novel Great Expectations. I do remember finishing it with unfulfilled expectations. To whose "great expectation" did the title refer? Were the "great expectations" met?

Expectations are funny things. I wonder if life ever really lives up to our expectation of it? This past week a Whole Foods store opened in Oklahoma City. Many people have been greatly anticipating this event. As I attempted to wonder through the store on the day after the grand opening (it was still far too crowded to truly wander), I overheard an employee mention that on opening day some people arrived at 4 am with lawn chairs to await the grand opening. Now I've heard of such "camping out" for Apple products, movies, and even books but for the grand opening of a . . . grocery store? Don't get me wrong, as I surveyed the deli and salad bad, my expectation were more than satisfied. But what type of expectations must a person have to arrive at 4 am?

When I graduated from high school in May of 1992, I expected to graduate from college exactly four years later. Well, two years later I did receive my Associates of Liberal Arts. So far, so good. Then life happened. Four years later I was receiving my Associates of Science in Nursing. This was now six years after graduating from high school. Already my expectations were a little battered. This coming May, 20 years after graduating from high school I will be receiving my Bachelors of Science, not the Bachelors of Arts I was expecting 20 years earlier. All of those early expectations were unfulfilled. Now I have new expectations regarding a Masters degree.

A colleague of mine asserts that expectations in general are the source of most of the discontent people experience. Yet, I feel addicted to generate expectations. My own "great expectations" of 20 years ago were not met, but they have been replaced by what I think are better expectations. So, are expectations motivating you or making you discontent?

New Blogger - Beware

I've made the leap into the cyber world of blogging. (Is the term "cyber" outdated?) As part of a composition class, I've become the latest new blogger - beware. I hope this will not be as traumatic for me as when I was a new driver, or as traumatic for the rest of you as new drivers are to me. So to begin this adventure, I ask for your advice. What do I do with this blog? Maybe the best way to answer is if you would share why you started your blog. Keep in mind that new bloggers, like new drivers, move slower than necessary. : )