Sometimes a Cigar is Just a Cigar

I remember being in Mrs. Taylor’s English class back in the tenth grade. One of the things we covered in the class was a read through/study of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Scarlet Letter”. 

When I was a kid, I was an avid reader. I read far more back then than I do now – I’m ashamed to admit. One thing I’ve never been good at: read more than one book at a time. Today I do read blogs, magazines, and the bible, and have no issue reading all of them at the same time. But I only read one book at a time. I think this falls more so into fiction than nonfiction reading. I can only really grasp one STORY at a time. 

When I started Mrs. Taylor’s class, I asked her if she would give me a week or two notice before we were to start “The Scarlet Letter”, to give me time to finish the current book and hold off on the next one. And that she did. She was a good teacher. 

The issue I found when we got into “The Scarlet Letter”, was something that has since framed how I look at a lot of literature – and that includes such things as the bible. During the class, Mrs. Taylor kept trying to get us to understand what Nathaniel Hawthorne MEANT when he wrote certain passages. The overall book was full of nuanced social and political issues that he apparently was trying to address.

My opinion of “The Scarlet Letter”? Nathaniel Hawthorne was trying to make a buck! That’s it. Nothing more. Sure, there were cultural things around him that affected how/what he wrote, but how in the world could we understand what he MEANT? He didn’t leave us a commentary track on the DVD (or whatever).

When I read devotionals and listen to various preachers talk about certain passages, sometimes their idea is to pull out some nugget of information that has never been addressed before, and help you see more of what God MEANT when a passage was written. They take a verse from this book of the bible and connect it to that book of the bible and try to convey something about something.

You know what? The bible is a giant story of the relationship of God to mankind, and mankind to God. That’s pretty much it. Sure there are cool things like prophecies that we see fulfilled (AFTER the fact – nobody caught the meaning of the prophecies WHEN they were given), but most of it is a collection of stories showing how mankind – full of flaws – is loved by a God without any.

Sometimes a story is just a story. Yes, there are lessons to be gained, but sometimes a story is just a story. And that’s okay.

© Emittravel 2014

. . . Or Press "3" for Annoying

This is sort of a sequel to the blog topic 'Press "2" for Polish' that I wrote about a year ago. The reason for it? Today, November 6, 2012, is election day here in the United States. Not only do we get to chose our next President (okay, THAT is another topic in itself - "Why You Don't Chose The President"), but we also get to vote for various elected officials, tax levies, etc. And that means voter ballots.

For me, the ballot was three long, double-sided pages. I got to read the item presented and then fill in the appropriate oval with a black pen, designating my choice/decision. The ballot was then fed into a double-sided scanner. And you know what? The ballot could have been half the size. Why? Because half of the ballot was in Spanish. Again, as I said in 'Press "2" for Polish', we are a largely Eastern European family here in my neighborhood. Though there are individuals where Spanish is the language of their roots, it doesn't seem to be prominent here.

Now, what follows may really annoy some of you. But as I state in my blog bio, get thicker skin. My intention is not to offend, but offences do come.

Up until several years ago, if you came to live in this country, and wanted to make something of yourself, you would learn the English language. For well over two hundred years, this has been the norm. People from all over the world, and backgrounds and cultures completely foreign to each other, came here, learned the English language, and made something of themselves. I admit, sometimes it was the second generation immigrant who really mastered the language, but not exclusively. When I was in the Navy, I would meet people in other countries who were so proud of their ability to speak English. And they WEREN'T living HERE!

So what happened? Why the shift to everything being in both English and Spanish? Sure, there are theories out there that sound "reasonable", but you know what? I'm thinking that the reason for the push for Spanish is that there is a belief by various individuals and groups in this country that Spanish-speaking people are too stupid to learn English, and therefore must have everything in their language. Understand, I don't personally think that is true. I'm thinking that learning English is easier today than ever - just look at all of the technological advances in education formats. But I can't help but believe that this MUST be a (viable) reason for the dual-language phenomenon over the last several years. And if I were you, I'd be VERY annoyed and insulted by that.

Of course, there IS the whole voter block thing . . . but that is for another blog topic . . .

© Emittravel 2012

Press "2" for Polish

I voted today. Yup. Got the sticker and everything. But I walked away confused, because the ballot was in English and Spanish. Now, I have nothing against those who speak Spanish (lovely language), but I’m scratching my head over the ballot.

You see, I live in Seven Hills, OH – which is REALLY close to Parma. One of the benefits to living here is the food! Nothing like ordering a steak and getting a choice of potatoes, rice, or pierogies. That’s right: pierogies. There is a large Eastern European population in my area and the menus reflect it. Funny, the voting ballot – or Lowes for that matter – doesn’t reflect that. The local Lowes home improvement store has signs in both English and Spanish, but I’ve NEVER heard anyone speaking Spanish there. Polish, yes. But Spanish? Ninguno.

I don’t hear the Polish people complaining that they don’t have signs or ballots in their language. Why? Because they ALSO speak English. No disenfranchisement there!

So, would someone explain to me why we pay more to have things printed in two languages?

© Emittravel 2011