Collecting Words

“We can learn much from wise words, little from wisecracks, and less from wise guys.” – William Arthur Ward

I’ve been collecting quotations and phrases for as long as I can remember. Sometimes I see something that inspires me, or makes me laugh or just tweaks my interest. I write it down on the back of an envelope, or a piece of scrap paper or I make a note of it in my blackberry. When I’m on vacation I keep a little notebook with me in case I see or hear something I want to remember.

A few weeks ago I was doing some work in a faith-based company. They had really cool office space. The walls of each office were glass and etched on each wall was a quotation. Their H.R. manager told me that when they moved into the space, the inhabitants of the offices were allowed to choose the quotations for their walls. There was much variety from many sources – Maya Angelou, Mother Theresa and The Bible, to name a few. My favourite one was a quote from Neil Young – “Nothing is perfect in God’s perfect plan”. That one sure got me thinking.

Last January, Merv and I spent a few days in Mexico. We had a Mayan tour guide to take us through Tulum. He told us quite a lot about Mayan culture and taught us a few Mayan words and phrases. My favourite was “Bishabel”. If you look it up on a translation site, it is translated as “How are you?” What it really means though is “How goes the road of your life?” He told us that highly enlightened ancient Mayans would put a stone on their foreheads between their eyes. The stone kept them from looking off to the sides and helped them to stay focused straight ahead on the road of their lives.

Last summer Merv and Jacob and I spent a week in Dublin. While we were there we visited Jameson’s Distillers. I didn’t care much for the whiskey (though I did have a pretty good Irish coffee there) but I loved the company motto “Sine Metu” which means “Without fear”. It was the motto on the Jameson family crest which was adopted as the company philosophy. The company has a colourful and interesting history and it would appear they really have acted in accordance with the motto and have thrived “Sine Metu”.

Have a wonderful Friday.