Names of Months
End of Granddaughters' Visit
Using Animals as Verbs
Cadet/Cad/Caddie
Check and Chess
Eyes
"Bon-odori"
Swans
Flags
Big Ben
Translations
Planets, Animals and Plants
Emperor
Names of Months
01/08/01
The word "calendar" comes from a Latin word meaning "account book". In the old Roman calendar, there were ten months in a year, but according to the Gregorian calendar used in most countries today, there are twelve months. Seven of those months (the first, third, fifth, seventh, eighth, tenth and twelfth) have 31 days. Four months (the fourth, sixth, ninth and eleventh) have thirty days and one month (the second) has twenty-eight days except in leap years, when it has twenty-nine. Thus, there are 365 days in a normal year, but 366 days in leap years. This corresponds to the time it takes for the earth to make one rotation around the sun. In old Japan, each of the months had a descriptive name related to that time of year, but in modern Japanese, the months are simply identified by numbers, from the first month to the twelfth. Likewise, in ancient Rome, the names of the months were related to numbers, which are reflected in the English names of the months from September to December. The prefixes "sept", "oct", "nov" and "dec" are used for words derived from Latin for the numbers seven, eight, nine and ten. Even after two new months were added at the beginning of the year in the Roman calendar, the subsequent months kept their old names. The old fifth and sixth months, however, were renamed for the Roman leaders, Julius Caesar and Augustus. That is how July and August got their names. Incidentally, both of those names are found in the classical English translation of the New Testament book of The Acts of the Apostles, chapter 27, verse 1. (296)
End of Granddaughters' Visit
01/08/03
This year, as the month named for Julius Caesar ended and the month named for Augustus began, my wife and I began feeling more relaxed and a bit lonely. During the entire month of July, our three granddaughters, aged 15, 13 and 11 were visiting us. The two older ones came by themselves from Japan; the younger one from New Mexico was accompanied by her father who remained with us for almost two weeks. Since these cousins do not see each other very often, they had a good time together and injected a youthful element into the more sedate atmosphere of this retirement community. On the last day of July, the girls were scheduled to leave from Jacksonville. We arrived at the airport in a heavy rain which complicated our entry. Each of them had an extra piece of baggage full of items which had been purchased here to take back to their family and friends. They also were scheduled to change planes at one place enroute to their destination. An extra fee was charged to have an airline attendant take them to their seats, lead them to the right gate and airplane at the transfer point and to verify the identification of the person who came to meet them at their destination. Since the girls headed for Japan by way of Detroit were scheduled to leave at 12:00 noon and the one headed for New Mexico by way of Houston was scheduled to leave from a different gate at 12:35, my wife and I had to rush from one gate to the other to see them off after they had been checked in earlier. We thoroughly enjoyed their visit, but realize the reason why children are given to young parents rather than grandparents. (309)
Using Animals as Verbs
01/08/05
As I look out the window of my study and see the squirrels run around the yard and up and down a tree, I am reminded that the words used for certain animals may also be used as verbs. Some squirrels store their food for winter in holes in the ground, so when "squirrel," is used as a verb, it means to store, to put aside for future use. Both "dog" and "cat" may also be used as verbs. As a verb, "dog" means to follow, to track or trail persistently. A "hound" is a certain kind of dog and when used as a verb, it means to pursue relentlessly or to urge insistently. The beam projecting outward from the bow of a ship and used as a support to lift the anchor is called a "cathead" and when "cat" is used as a verb, it means to hoist an anchor to the cathead. To "cow" someone means to frighten with threats or a show of force and to "horse around" means to engage in rowdy, rough play. A "pony" is a small horse, but it is also used for a word-for-word translation of a foreign language text, especially one used secretly by students. So when used as a verb, "pony" means to prepare lessons with a pony. To "badger" means to pester or nag and "chicken" means to act in a cowardly manner, to lose one's nerve. As a verb, "monkey" means to play with something idly or to behave in a mischievous manner. A person who "wolfs" food, eats voraciously and a person who "hawks" may be simply clearing his throat or shouting about the goods he is selling along the street. Alert minds can learn from observing nature and the activities of other creatures. Jesus told people to look at the birds and to learn from them (Matthew 6:26). (297)
Cadet/Cad/Caddie
01/08/08
Among various English words that are rooted in the Latin word for "head" is "cadet", which entered English through French. In French, it meant "little head" and, in English, it was first applied to younger sons of noble families. Now, it signifies a student at a military school who is in training to become an officer. When the word is shortened to "cad", it originally was used for servants but now is applied to an ill-mannered man or boy whose behavior is not gentlemanly. Fortunately, most "caddies" are not "cads". "Caddie" was used in Scotland to denote a boy hired to do odd jobs, an errand boy, but in modern English it denotes the attendant to a golfer, the one who carries his clubs. Some caddies of professional golfers, who have served as such for many years and are well acquainted with the golfers, do more than carry the golf clubs. They also give advice regarding which club to use and how to make the most efficient use of it. Some professional golfers rely to a great extent on the advice of their caddie, who may be considered the golfer's friend, advisor and psychiatrist as well as his employee. Although golf is a popular game among many businessmen and politicians in Japan, I was not attracted to it because it was too expensive, required too much land in that country where land should be put to better use and did not stimulate vigorous exercise. I preferred tennis. Whether one plays golf, tennis or any other sport, however, the words of II Timothy 2:5 are relevant: "if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the rules." (303)
Check and Chess
01/08/10
In my dictionary, the word "check," when used as a noun, has 14 different meanings. Americans will naturally associate the word with money, whether it be the written order to a bank to pay the amount specified from funds on deposit or the bill at a restaurant which must be paid. The origin of this word in English, however, is related to the game of chess. This "game of kings," entered the West from Persia but may have originated in Russia, where it continues to be very popular today. It is played by two players on a chessboard with 64 squares on which each player has control over 16 chessmen which are distinguished by their shapes. They include a king, a queen, two bishops, two knights, two rooks and eight pawns. In chess, "check" denotes a move that directly attacks an opponent's king. If the king is unable to escape from this attack, it becomes a "checkmate" and brings the game to an end. Thus "check" may also denote an abrupt halt or stop, a restraint or control. It is important for parents and teachers to keep a check on the children under their supervision. In Japan, a similar game, called "shogi," is played on a checkered board of 81 squares. Rules are similar to chess, but each player has 20 chessmen which are distinguished by the ideographs written on them. It is said that around 1010 A. D, in Madrid, Spain, East and West, Christian and Muslim began coming together in the one cultural activity they had in common, which was the game of chess. Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton, an English philanthropist, has left us these significant words "In life, as in chess, forethought wins." (304)
Eyes
01/08/12
One of the characteristics of the English language is the irregularity of its pronunciation and spelling. Such short, simple words that are pronounced the same as the letters U and I, for example, can be spelled in different ways. The pronoun "you" denotes the person being addressed and the noun "ewe" signifies a female sheep. An "aye" denotes an affirmative vote, but an "eye", the organ of vision, is one of the most important parts of the body, a marvelous organ which naturally makes adjustments related to brightness and distance. Among our five senses, it is primarily through our eyes that we gain knowledge. Eyes, like skin, come in different colors and it is reported that people with blue eyes are less sensitive to pain than people with eyes of any other color. People who can see more clearly from a distance, are said to be far-sighted, while those unable to see distant objects clearly are nearsighted and British scientists have found that nearsighted children exhibited a "higher-than-average intelligence". Medical research has indicated that the pupil of one's eye gets bigger if the viewer likes what is seen, but gets smaller if the opposite is true. Finally, here are a few interesting facts which I have collected from various sources in regard to eyes: the giant squid has the largest eyes in the world; an ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain; and a shark is the only fish that can blink both eyes. When Jesus called eyes "the lamp of the body" and said "If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light" (Matthew 6:22), he was not speaking simply of our physical eyes. (308)
"Bon-odori"
01/08/15
In Japanese tradition, the sense of "community" is very strong. This "community" is not limited to those living or working in the surrounding area. It includes family members and ancestors who have passed away. Every summer in the middle of July or August, depending on the area, a special celebration is held to welcome back the spirits of those who have died. Traditionally, on the 13th day of the month, a little fire is lit in a small clay pot placed at the entrance to the family's home. Called a "welcome-fire", it is to guide or welcome the spirits of the dead. Various kinds of food are placed on a Buddhist altar in the home for the returning spirits and a Buddhist priest is called to chant a sutra, or prayer, before the altar. During this "Bon" festival, a traditional folk dance, called "Bon-odori", is held in a large open area for the entire community. In the middle of the open area, a wooden platform is erected on which at least one large, traditional drum is placed and where dance leaders may give directions. Women and men, girls and boys, many of whom are dressed in the traditional Japanese summer kimono, circle the platform performing the repetitive steps and hand motions that are involved in the dance to celebrate the "homecoming" of the ancestral spirits. On the 16th day of the month, another fire is lit to signify farewell as the spirits leave. Since I had been asked to present a program in the nursing home in this retirement community on August 13th, I explained about this Japanese festival which I have seen many times but never participated in despite numerous invitations to do so. (310)
Swans
01/08/17
Birds that live in or by the water are called aquatic birds. The three most common such birds are ducks, geese and swans. All of them have webbed feet. Ducks have broad, flat bills. The bills of geese are shorter and more pointed; their necks are longer, but not as long as swans. Swans are usually white and they move gracefully. In American slang, a peculiar person may be called a "duck" and a silly person may be called a "goose", but to say that someone resembles a "swan" may be a compliment. According to an ancient legend, swans that are mute during their lives sing a beautiful song just before they die and so "swan song" denotes the final work or appearance of a composer, artist, actor, etc. Swans swim in a pond in the central park in my hometown and I used to enjoy watching them. They also swim in the River Thames in London, England. Those swans in the winding 130-kilometer stretch of the Thames west of Windsor Castle, the Queen's weekend home, are recognized as belonging to the Queen. Five times a year, Her Majesty's Swan Marker boards a flat-bottomed open boat and sails along that river to count the number of swans by catching them and lifting them out of the water, which is called "swan-upping." This custom has been followed since the 12th century. Because the Thames was very dirty 40 years ago, the number of swans decreased, but now the river is cleaner and there are more than a thousand swans residing there. The "Swanee River" made famous in Stephen Foster's song is not related to swans. It is his peculiar abbreviation of "Suwannee River" to fit the cadence of his song. (305)
Flags
01/08/19
A "flag" is a piece of cloth of distinctive size, color and design, used as a symbol or emblem. Every country has a special flag that represents that particular nation. The national flag of Japan consists of a red disc, representing the sun, in the center of a white field. Although this flag has been used on Japanese ships since 1854, it was not officially designated the national flag until two years ago this month. The national flag of the United States of America consists of thirteen horizontal stripes, alternating red and white, and a blue rectangle on which are fifty white stars in the upper corner next to the staff. The thirteen stripes represent the original thirteen colonies that declared their independence from Great Britain in 1776 and the fifty stars represent the fifty states at the present time. Although the number of stars has changed as new states were recognized, the basic design of the flag was officially approved by the Continental Congress in 1777. Flags are also used to represent other organizations. The Christian flag, which may be seen in the sanctuaries of many churches in the U. S. A. along with the national flag, consists of a white field with a red cross on a blue rectangle in the upper staff-side corner. At the center of this retirement community, there is a large bulletin board on which are listed various meetings and important notices. On one side of the board a small Christian flag is displayed whenever one of the residents dies. When the flag is seen, we know that one of our friends has passed away and we check the board to find out who it was and when it happened. (311)
Big Ben
01/08/24
"Ben" is the common abbreviation, or nickname, for "Benjamin", which was the name of the youngest of the twelve sons of Jacob. In Hebrew, the name means "son of my right hand". According to Genesis 35:16-18, this last son of Jacob and Rachel was born as his mother was dying and with her last breath she named him Benomi, which means "son of my trouble", but his father named him Benjamin and he became Jacob's favorite son. Jacob's sons all became heads of the twelve tribes of Israel, and, in the 11th chapter of his Letter to the Romans, the Apostle Paul stated that he was from the tribe of Benjamin. Benjamin is also my middle name. It was the name of one of my father's brothers, my Uncle Ben, and was chosen as my middle name after my elder brother had been given the name of my father as his middle name. My wife and I followed this example, giving our elder son my name for his middle name and the name of my brother as the middle name of our younger son. "Big Ben" is a well-known name in the United Kingdom. Many people consider it the name of the 97-meter-high tower of England's Houses of Parliament. Others correct this misconception and assert that "Big Ben" is not the tower but the clock which is in the tower. Actually, however, this name was originally applied neither to the clock nor to the tower, but to the 13.5 ton bell in the clock tower, which tolls the hours. When the bell was installed in 1858, it was supposed to be called Saint Stephen's bell, but the newspapers called it "Big Ben" after Sir Benjamin Hall the rotund Commissioner of Works who supervised its installation. (313)
Translations
01/08/26
There are many words that begin with the prefix "trans" derived from a Latin word meaning "beyond" or "through". Some of them are related to movement or changes from one place or form to another, such as "transport", "transfer", "transmit" and "transform". In relation to language or literature, there are the words "transcribe", "translate" and "transliterate". To "transcribe" is to write in a different form. To "translate" is to express words in another language and to "transliterate" is to represent letters or words in the corresponding characters of another alphabet. Many of the readers of these "Timely Words" messages are involved in translating or translations of one kind or another. The Bible has been translated from the original Hebrew and Greek into over a thousand different languages, but there are also a number of different translations into the same language. In English, the King James Version, also called the Authorized Version, was first published in 1611. This translation is in the classical English of the Shakespearean age, but there are numerous translations made by committees or individuals into contemporary, or modern, English. All translations are imperfect but most of them have positive as well as negative aspects. When I preached the sermon at the Penney Memorial Church recently, my wife was the liturgist who read the Bible lessons. I asked her to read the Old Testament lesson from the American Standard Version and the New Testament lesson from the King James Version, both of which are in dated English. In a future message, I will explain the reason. (316) (Uploading of the "New Voiced Message" will be delayed until 8/27.)
Planets, Animals and Plants
01/08/28
The word "planet" is derived from a Greek word meaning "wanderer", a person who roams about aimlessly. But the courses followed by the planets revolving around the sun are very definite so "wanderer" is not an appropriate term for them. The Japanese names of the days of the week are derived from the sun, the moon and the five planets of Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn. The only planet that we know has life on it is the planet Earth, on which we live. Living things on this planet are divided into two major groups: animals and plants. A basic difference between them is related to the power of locomotion, the ability to move. Animals are able to move from one place to another, but plants are unable to do so. Both animals and plants range in size from microscopic protozoa and bacteria to huge mammals and trees. The largest land animal is the elephant. Some elephants are almost four meters tall and weigh over 10,000 kilograms but, according to The New York Public Library's "Book of Answers", the largest animal ever seen alive was a female blue whale which was 34 meters long and weighed 170 tons. The same book reports that the world's largest plant is the General Sherman Tree in the Sequoia National Park in California. This giant Sequoia is about 83 meters tall, more than 30 meters in circumference and is thought to be about 3,500 years old. Truly, we live on an extraordinary planet in an amazing universe. As an ancient poet wrote, when the wonders of the heavens are considered, it is amazing that the Creator is concerned about human beings and has given them such power (Psalm 8). (314)
Emperor
01/08/31
The title given to the head of a government depends upon the character and tradition of the nation over which he or she "rules. Most nations today are "republics" whose heads are called "presidents". "Kingdoms" are ruled by a "king" or "queen"; a "sultanate" is ruled by a "sultan" and an "emir" rules over an "emirate". A dictionary definition of an "emperor" is the "ruler of an empire." There are no "empires" in the current list of members of the United Nations, but one country continues to call its head of state an "emperor". That country is Japan. Rooted in a Latin word meaning "command", this title was first applied to Roman magistrates and military commanders, but from the time of Julius Caesar,it was used for rulers of the Roman Empire. The reign of the last Roman emperor ended in 1453, but after that, rulers of certain areas in Europe, Africa and the Americas were also called "emperors". The ancient ruler of China was called "emperor" in English and the same title was accorded the ruler of Japan, even before there was a Japanese "Empire." The Chinese characters used in that title, pronounced "tennou" in Japanese, literally mean "heavenly sovereign". Under the present Japanese Constitution, which was produced under American supervision during the Allied Occupation, the Emperor is "the symbol of the State and of the unity of the people, deriving his position from the will of the people with whom resides sovereign power." In reply to those who asked about paying taxes to the Roman emperor, Jesus' reply was "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's" (Mark 12:17). (318)