Monday, April 25, 2011

Cut the Quibble

They're not that different from you, are they? Same haircuts. Full of hormones, just like you. Invincible, just like you feel. The world is their oyster. They believe they're destined for great things, just like many of you, their eyes are full of hope, just like you. Did they wait until it was too late to make from their lives even one iota of what they were capable? Because, you see gentlemen, these boys are now fertilizing daffodils. But if you listen real close, you can hear them whisper their legacy to you. Go on, lean in. Listen, you hear it? - - Carpe - - hear it? - - Carpe, carpe diem, seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary. ~ John Keating, "Dead Poets Society"

Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines quibble as evading the point of an argument by caviling about words.  Don't you love it when a dictionary defines a word using other unknown words? Perhaps my vocabulary would be more expanded if I had committed to my education more fully in my early years.  That's what I get for hauling in a cereal box to my English class during my senior year when asked to bring in my favorite reading material.  The little prank didn't end there...we had to write a paper describing WHY our novel, short story, poetry, or cereal box was significant.

My term paper earned me an "A" even though I quibbled, caviled and prevaricated from beginning to end.  My student-teacher, Mr. Nelson, found a way to connect with this outcast.  His tolerance of my shenanigans and his non-conventional methods, something right out of the movie, "Dead Poets Society," starring Robin Williams, planted some kind of seed in me that finally sprouted long after my gray hair showed up.

So, what's the point of today's post?  Here you go....

It's time to stop evading the reason for your existence.  You can try to cover up who you are by bringing cereal boxes to school, claiming it's your favorite reading material, or you can get serious and develop your God-given talents.  The next time someone asks you who you are, tell them, "I'm a child of God and He loves me. He created me with some really awesome gifts and I plan to share them with the world."

Are you ready to cut the quibble? Your life is a term paper.  What grade are you shooting for? Carpe Diem...

2 comments:

JP said...

What a wonderful blog. I love vocabulary and will try to send you interesting words to help your vocabulary grow.

Michael Mulligan said...

I finally outgrew the cereal boxes. Thanks, JP. Your words and your spirit enrich me.