Voting a vital custom

A custom, according to Webster’s, is a “usual practice or habitual way of behaving.” A synonym for "custom" is “habit.”

I’ve been impressed with the number of citizens -- of varied political persuasions -- going door to door here in Grand Junction and urging fellow citizens to exercise a hard-won right, the right to vote.

Let’s hope on this Election Day that more and more Americans will decide to make voting a custom. It’s a habit that serves us all well.

Illustration special to the Sentinel
 

Confections or mushrooms?

These days we tend to think of truffles as elegant confections. 

They are also parts of subterranean mushrooms, prized for their distinctive flavor. These truffles are quite pricy and therefore considered a good cash crop in countries such as France. For centuries, the French used pigs to sniff out truffles.  Now, according to Wikipedia,dogs are more commonly used because they are less likely to devour their lucrative discoveries.

Photo by Robert Vayssié courtesy of Wikipedia
 

Fifth day honors ancient gods

The word “Thursday” is more proof that English is classified as a Germanic language. It means Thor’s day.

Thor was a powerful Norse god associated with thunder and lighting, much like Zeus/Jupiter were in Greek/Latin mythology. (The Nordic languages of Danish, Swedish and Norwegian are considered North Germanic languages.)

People whose language is primarily based on Latin pay tribute to Thor’s counterpart, Jupiter (also called Jove) on the same day. For example, “Thursday” is “jueves” in Spanish.

Thor's Battle Against the Jötnar (1872) by Mårten Eskil Winge
Caption and photo of painting courtesy of Wikipedia
 

Tsar power

Variations of Julius Caesar’s last name crop up in at least three different languages: German, Russian and English.

“The Latin pronunciation of Caesar is ky’ zar,” writes Isaac Asimov in Words from History. “The Germans kept the Latin pronunciation and spelled it, according to their system, as Kaiser. This means ‘Emperor’ in German.”

Asimov notes that in the mid-1400s the Russians also picked up the word, but at first called it tsesar. Eventually it became tsar, and in English it became czar.

Russian Tsar Peter the Great
Photo of painting courtesy of Wikipedia
 

When a fly becomes a moth

The word “assimilate” comes from the Latin prefix ad meaning “to,” and similare, meaning ”to make similar, “ according to Webster’s.

Webster’s provides a number of definitions. In a physiological sense, to assimilate means “to incorporate nutrients into the body.” Sociologically, it means “to absorb (groups of different cultures) into the main cultural body.” In that sense, America, the world’s great melting pot, has seen centuries of assimilation.

Webster’s notes that assimilate also means to “to absorb and incorporate into one’s thinking.” This is my favorite definition, as I am watching my two grandchildren use assimilation almost constantly now.

For instance, last week my two-year-old grandson spied a tiny moth in my house. “Fly!” he cried.

“That’s a moth,” I replied, seeing the similarity between the two creatures, but wanting him to know the difference.

“Moth,” he repeated, much to my delight.

I was proud that he immediately repeated the word, a good way to assimilate it into his rapidly growing repertoire. He also mastered the “th” blend. I must add that he now frequently rambles on in complete sentences, but often only his five-year-old sis understands them word for word. We have to ask her to translate.

I find moths rather annoying, but I hope another one turns up the next time my grandson visits. I’ll then see if he has truly assimilated the word. As a proud grandma, I’m bettin’ he will.

Photo special to the Sentinel