yelling WORDS in a crowded theater
Reply to this meme by yelling "Words!" and I will give you five words that remind me of you. Then post them in your LJ and explain what they mean to you.
The lovely Nicole gave me the following:
Forgiveness, hardworking, firm, leisure, nature
1. Forgiveness
I've written before about how I often incorporate the other person's point of view into my thinking to an extent that's probably excessive. That holds true with most situations where I'm called on to forgive someone, I'd say. It's pretty rare that I can't find a way to reconcile myself to a person's actions or positions. I like to think it makes up for my flaw of wanting to lay blame on someone when things go wrong. It bothers me when people hold grudges, not only when they're against me but when they're against other people. I guess I think that life is short, and if you refuse to forgive someone you're almost looking for a reason to be upset. This is coupled with the expectation that the person who errs realizes it and apologizes, which is, of course, where everything falls down.
(But seriously, don't let your dog crap in my flowers.)
2. Hardworking
I'm the child of two very hardworking people, and although I was an astonishingly lazy kid, if you give me a reason to invest myself in what I'm doing, I'll throw myself into it. This word makes me think of my grandfather, who worked three jobs to put himself through college during the Great Depression. My father's sometimes hinted that my grandfather was a bit of a workaholic, which is fair enough, and I don't think that I'm anywhere near that level, but the philosophy's carried through to me. I want to feel proud of what I've accomplished, whether that's making lattes or painting walls. The downside is that I'm very quick to feel underappreciated. Sometimes I wonder if this is because of gender norms-- at several points I've felt that I deserve more pay, but haven't pounded the table about it if I was praised for my work, and I think this is something a lot of women go through. It makes me think of a Laurie Anderson lyric from about 1989:
"Okay, okay, hold it.
I just want to say something.
You know, for every dollar a man makes, a woman makes sixty-three cents.
Now, fifty years ago that was sixty-two cents.
So, with that kind of luck,
it'll be the year 3888
before we make a buck. But hey, girls,
We can take it,
and if we can't, we're gonna fake it.
We're gonna save ourselves, save ourselves.
Yeah, tell it to the judge."
3. Firm
I aspire to firmness-- not being pushy or aggressive, but standing one's ground. I like that bumper sticker that reads "Speak your truth, even if your voice shakes." I think that firmness is an essential quality for parents to have, and I get twitchy when I see parents who cave to their kids. It's part of a healthy romantic relationship or friendship, too. I especially like seeing people who have been meek and over-accommodating learning how to stand up for themselves. (That scene in Amelie where she sasses back at the mean grocer always makes me want to pump my fist and go TELL HIM! OOOOOOH!) I think Nic could have easily picked 'stubborn' instead of firm for me (I'll cop to it), but I'm pleased with her choice, because 'firm' carries a connotation of balance and clearheadedness that 'stubborn' doesn't.
4. Leisure
I'll be honest, this particular word makes me think of guys in plaid pants and tasseled tam-o-shanters playing golf. Do people still dress like that to go golfing? I hope so. Such delicious oddity must not perish from the face of the Earth!
5. Nature
I have a tattoo on my ankle that includes a pentagram, which I got as soon as I turned eighteen. I no longer consider myself Wiccan, and am somewhat embarrassed at my teenage arrogance in thinking I could affect the course of my life and other people's lives using table salt, Spice Classics herbs and books I bought at Barnes and Noble. (I don't mean to knock the Wiccan faith, by the way. It encourages deep reflection, peaceful interactions with others, and to be outdoors as much as possible. Certainly nothing wrong with that.)
With that said, though, my feelings about nature are still pretty close to what might be called spiritual. I'm amazed by the complexity and interconnectedness of the gazillion different types of plant and animal life, and when I travel somewhere new I'm eager to walk around and see what the grass and trees and flowers and insects look like, how the air smells, what it feels like when a storm is coming. I go to nature to regain a sense of being centered, to remember what's important, to remember that I am not my job, or what clothes I buy, or what degree I haven't gotten, or what trips I have or haven't taken, or what's in my bank account. It helps me appreciate how lucky I am to be alive.
Yeah, yeah, I'm still a hippie. I just use deodorant now.
The lovely Nicole gave me the following:
Forgiveness, hardworking, firm, leisure, nature
1. Forgiveness
I've written before about how I often incorporate the other person's point of view into my thinking to an extent that's probably excessive. That holds true with most situations where I'm called on to forgive someone, I'd say. It's pretty rare that I can't find a way to reconcile myself to a person's actions or positions. I like to think it makes up for my flaw of wanting to lay blame on someone when things go wrong. It bothers me when people hold grudges, not only when they're against me but when they're against other people. I guess I think that life is short, and if you refuse to forgive someone you're almost looking for a reason to be upset. This is coupled with the expectation that the person who errs realizes it and apologizes, which is, of course, where everything falls down.
(But seriously, don't let your dog crap in my flowers.)
2. Hardworking
I'm the child of two very hardworking people, and although I was an astonishingly lazy kid, if you give me a reason to invest myself in what I'm doing, I'll throw myself into it. This word makes me think of my grandfather, who worked three jobs to put himself through college during the Great Depression. My father's sometimes hinted that my grandfather was a bit of a workaholic, which is fair enough, and I don't think that I'm anywhere near that level, but the philosophy's carried through to me. I want to feel proud of what I've accomplished, whether that's making lattes or painting walls. The downside is that I'm very quick to feel underappreciated. Sometimes I wonder if this is because of gender norms-- at several points I've felt that I deserve more pay, but haven't pounded the table about it if I was praised for my work, and I think this is something a lot of women go through. It makes me think of a Laurie Anderson lyric from about 1989:
"Okay, okay, hold it.
I just want to say something.
You know, for every dollar a man makes, a woman makes sixty-three cents.
Now, fifty years ago that was sixty-two cents.
So, with that kind of luck,
it'll be the year 3888
before we make a buck. But hey, girls,
We can take it,
and if we can't, we're gonna fake it.
We're gonna save ourselves, save ourselves.
Yeah, tell it to the judge."
3. Firm
I aspire to firmness-- not being pushy or aggressive, but standing one's ground. I like that bumper sticker that reads "Speak your truth, even if your voice shakes." I think that firmness is an essential quality for parents to have, and I get twitchy when I see parents who cave to their kids. It's part of a healthy romantic relationship or friendship, too. I especially like seeing people who have been meek and over-accommodating learning how to stand up for themselves. (That scene in Amelie where she sasses back at the mean grocer always makes me want to pump my fist and go TELL HIM! OOOOOOH!) I think Nic could have easily picked 'stubborn' instead of firm for me (I'll cop to it), but I'm pleased with her choice, because 'firm' carries a connotation of balance and clearheadedness that 'stubborn' doesn't.
4. Leisure
I'll be honest, this particular word makes me think of guys in plaid pants and tasseled tam-o-shanters playing golf. Do people still dress like that to go golfing? I hope so. Such delicious oddity must not perish from the face of the Earth!
5. Nature
I have a tattoo on my ankle that includes a pentagram, which I got as soon as I turned eighteen. I no longer consider myself Wiccan, and am somewhat embarrassed at my teenage arrogance in thinking I could affect the course of my life and other people's lives using table salt, Spice Classics herbs and books I bought at Barnes and Noble. (I don't mean to knock the Wiccan faith, by the way. It encourages deep reflection, peaceful interactions with others, and to be outdoors as much as possible. Certainly nothing wrong with that.)
With that said, though, my feelings about nature are still pretty close to what might be called spiritual. I'm amazed by the complexity and interconnectedness of the gazillion different types of plant and animal life, and when I travel somewhere new I'm eager to walk around and see what the grass and trees and flowers and insects look like, how the air smells, what it feels like when a storm is coming. I go to nature to regain a sense of being centered, to remember what's important, to remember that I am not my job, or what clothes I buy, or what degree I haven't gotten, or what trips I have or haven't taken, or what's in my bank account. It helps me appreciate how lucky I am to be alive.
Yeah, yeah, I'm still a hippie. I just use deodorant now.