What’s the word for that feeling?
If there’s one thing I will always be grateful for, it’s for how much I was able to read growing up.
To this day, my parents continue to be two of the most avid readers I have ever known — and it’s something they made sure I did a lot of too. Way before I remember there being a television at home, I remember there being books. So many. Of all kinds. And even if the ones at home weren’t enough for whatever reason, I’d be at libraries. Reading, borrowing or returning books. Of late, I’ve found myself longing for the kind of enthusiasm and focus I had for reading when I was younger. Damn you, Internet.
So in between the rapid circulation of library issues of The Hardy Boys, St. Clare’s, Just William and Target, my mother would gatekeep PG-rated titles by Sidney Sheldon and Irving Wallace (The Prize remains one of the coolest books I’ve ever read) from her collection. And my father had the uncanny knack of bringing home some hard-to-find books — from backdated issues of Mad Magazine and Misha to the latest spy novels from Robert Ludlum or Tom Clancy.
Another way he’d bring home obscure books was in the form of bound sets of photocopied pages (*cough* piracy *cough*). I remember reading one such book about the history of the Mossad. And even an illustrated version of The Bible where the characters were stick figures. But the book of this kind that has stayed with me the most was something called Sniglets. Conceived by comedian/author Rich Hall, it’s a hilarious compilation of “words that don’t appear in the dictionary, but should”. So a “doork” is a person who always pushes on a door marked “pull” or vice versa. And a “pigslice” is the last unclaimed piece of pizza that everyone is secretly dying for. You get the drift. For someone who has always enjoyed wordplay and puns, it was everything I loved in a book. Funny illustrations included.
Today’s link brought back happy memories of that book and those times. But it also shed some light on something I think about often — about how to describe something I’m feeling but I just can’t seem to find the word for. Turns out I’m not the only one.
It seems like when you feel limited by your own language(s) or vocabulary, it could be a good idea to turn to foreign cultures. And learn some of their words for certain emotions and experiences — so you can give a name to what it is you’re feeling. As the article says, “learning to identify and cultivate these experiences could give you a richer and more successful life.” And “offer a very different way of seeing the world”. Count me in.
Till next week, I wish you all the sukha you need.
