Wednesday, March 8, 2017

Wordplay Wednesday™ March 8, 2017 – Womanpower



… that all PEOPLE are created equal …

It just so happens that the #2 song* on the Top 40 charts 50 Years Ago this Month, was the Rolling Stones’ “Ruby Tuesday.”

That song didn’t strike a chord in those turbulent times—that mirror today—because there were so many women named Ruby. No, the song personified her independence, still considered a mark of rebel insolence in women, as late as the 1960s.

Have you ever actually heard its lyrics? “Don’t question why she needs to be so free | She’ll tell you it’s the only way to be …”** Absolutely.

Celebrating the rights and wonders of women everywhere today

WOMANPOWER (woomʹɘn pouʹɘr) n. – the collective strength or potential for work, activism, etc. of the women in a given group, area, nation, etc. [WW #102]

“Ruby” (Linda Keith, according to Keith Richards’ book, Life, as noted in Wiki) was free-spirited and reports indicate she’d wandered down a typically Sixties dangerous path. Disturbingly, her womanpower to choose that path was revoked.

We all make mistakes; and while some of our choices can ruin our lives, no one has a crystal ball to know which ones, or in what way. The key word is CHOICE. An ominous choice of today could turn into a sparkling future tomorrow. Bottom line, it should be our choice—male or female—on equal levels.

Women have struggled for equal footing with men, since time began. Why has it always been so? Who cares. That it is STILL an issue, is the problem.

In this age of “politically correct” changes made to practically everything (right or wrong), in terms of gender, race, and culture, why have we not addressed, arguably, the single-most powerful assertion of American history?

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men …” (My bolding.)

Think about it. If the men who wrote that document truly meant “men” in a general, all-inclusive term, then why didn’t they simply write “people”? As in “We the people ...”? Because they wrote what they meant. Women were not included in that vital declaration of independence …
Ephesus Greek ruin/Nike, LR 2006 Turkey

So. Isn’t it past-time to create a new Declaration that supports the people of today’s America, and our children’s future? It can be done … with #womanpower.

Word Challenge: WOMANPOWER. Male or Female, think about its implications, history, and our need for its collective intelligence, as you fit womanpower into your week of potent writings.

Write first for yourself … only then can you write for others. (L.Rochelle)

                     

* KFRC/San Francisco, March 1, 1967 (featured survey March, 2017); “Ruby Tuesday” had been #1 for weeks, supplanted by the combined male-female power of “Happy Together.”😉

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Wednesday, March 1, 2017

Wordplay Wednesday™ March 1, 2017 – Nous



Welcome to Wordplay Wednesday “101”! 

Class … Class … Class! May I have your attention, please!

How many times did you hear that line stressed, in the twelve- to sixteen-plus years of your education? Well, imagine you’re back sitting on a hard wooden chair, a doodle-bedecked tablet (old-school or new) on the battered desk in front of you, while you peruse the cute guy or girl in the next row.

Wordplay Wednesday “101” is now in session …

NOUS (nōōs) n. – 1) mind, reason, or intellect, specif. as a metaphysical principle; 2) shrewdness or understanding; savvy. [WW #101; see also, noetic, from WW 09/02/2015.] 

So … what does that mean?

Wiki explains nous in layman’s terms, “… sometimes equated to intellect or intelligence, is a philosophical term for the faculty of the human mind which is described in classical philosophy as necessary for understanding what is true or real.”

Some folks, including the original Greek philosophers, have gone beyond the intellect to equate nous to the metaphysical and intuition. It even forms a base of understanding in the Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS), founded by Apollo 14 astronaut, Edgar Mitchell (1930-2016).

Following his moon walk and returning to Earth, the trained engineer and scientist found himself faced in space with a thought he couldn’t attribute to mathematics or any known structure. “He knew that the beautiful blue world to which he was returning is part of a living system, harmonious and whole—and that we all participate, as he expressed it later, ‘in a universe of consciousness.’”

We can argue all day about the “true” meaning of nous—it exists in that nebulous realm of feelings, understanding, and intuition.

But by initially defining nous for you, I hope with Wordplay Wednesday “101” to do what your educators did for you a few, or oh-so-many, years ago … encourage you to think.

This word works as a catalyst—what do you think, feel, understand, or intuit, as true and/or real?

Today, we are facing a slippery slope of fake news and charismatic charlatans in every faction of our lives, to an extent that would shock and mortify poor Aristotle. How are our minds to distinguish what is true?

To combat the inanity, nous needs to move past the classic philosophy of Aristotle and Plato, to be explored in the mainstream as a cognitive development.

Nurturing our minds through the nous of humanity, peace, and compassion, is our only hope for the future.

Think big. Think magnanimously … most of all ... THNIK!*

*If you didn’t get the humor of that and thought I simply spelled “think” wrong, you’re just too young to remember when it was all the rage on t-shirts, hats, and especially in teachers’ classrooms. 😏 

Word Challenge: NOUS. Make it the center of your thoughts as you fit nous into your week of intellectual musings and writings.

Write first for yourself … only then can you write for others. (L.Rochelle)


                       

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Wednesday, February 22, 2017

100th Wordplay Wednesday™ February 22, 2017 – Monoglot



100 is Great but 1 is Enough 

These days it isn’t merely beneficial, it’s nearly a necessity to speak more than one language. Silly me … I quit French in high school, oh so many years ago, to pick up another business class.

My crystal ball failed to show me how much languages would soon be such a gigantic asset in business. Story of my life. I can, however, still converse in Pig Latin; though I could use a little brush-up course. 😏

For Wordplay Wednesday’s 100th anniversary week, I chose an appropriate example. Note that even the dictionary seems to deride in tone, those who are not language-ambidextrous*; and only the lonely are a …

MONOGLOT (mänʹō glät’) adj.– speaking or writing only one language; n. a monoglot person. [WW #100.] 

While I have not opted to learn a second language, lexicology can often seem foreign. I refuse, however, to feel inferior for preferring to work toward mastering English. This monoglot holds her English head high, albeit a little crooked, in her word eccentricities.  

It should count that I often pick up on other languages through fun phrases and less crass sounding cuss words. Besides—why would I want to confuse myself with another set of grammarrules I don’t agree with? Being a monoglot has its advantages.

If I were to learn another language at this late date, I’d choose Gaelic. Why? It’s that of my heritage, plus it isn’t as prevalent as others, thus needs a little preservation boost. (And I’d like to know what those pesky Leprechauns are saying about me!)

Seriously though. If you have a hankering to visit another country, or think your business exploits may benefit with at least a conversational skill in an alternate language, or you simply love to learn—you are never too young or too old.

L'apprentissage est l'essence de la vie … Learning is the essence of life.

Cheers to our 100th Wordplay Wednesday!

Word Challenge: MONOGLOT. Enjoy mastering your language with pride and proficiency as you fit monoglot into your week of meaningful writings.

Write first for yourself … only then can you write for others. (L.Rochelle)

 
                       

*For those who have not read my column before, yes, I know I use words out of context and play with their meanings. Hence, the title “Wordplay.” If you can’t have fun in your own language, how can you appreciate another?

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