I was galloping through the internet looking for some ideas about a particular topic. I came across a whole section about problems caused by poor grammar. This raised my curiosity so I read the section and learned some things that I did not know. I hope that I use proper grammar. If I don't, sorry about that. One of the great benefit is that I use spell check programs often pick out grammatical errors. I hope that they pick up my mistakes. An intriguiging point in the section is that some people really get bent out of shape when they hear or read bad grammar. Some people are so intense in pointing out the grammatical mistakes of others that there is a phrase that some use called "grammar nazis." (Nope that I did not capitalize "nazis." I do not wish to give any recognition to this horrible word. Not being certain whether even using this word will draw unwelcome attention, I will move right to my point. (I'm in a cautious mood today which always happens the week before the Super Bowl.) But I digress. I want to make two points in this post: 1. People who feel the need to point out the sins of others should review the words of Jesus about judging. 2. If you're going to point out any grammatical errors I might have made, don't. I don't care. I really don't. How is this for a mellow beginning to this post!
On the first point, I have one acquaintance who can always be relied on to correct something that I might have just said. This person thinks that they know everything becasue they are well connected. He/she is wrong. He/she does not know everything. In fact, I know a lot more than he/she does. But who's counting? Do I have a point here? I generally do not correct what people say unless it is something that is really dangerous, so wrong that it is scary, or some other reason. I figure life is too short to be correcting other people. Very few people express their gratitude to me when I might correct something that he/she has just said. I will admit that, under my breath, way under my breath, I am calling the person unsavory names - and doing so with emphasis, glee and determination. I'm not going to be arrogant and say that I am never wrong or mistaken. Rather, I find the efforts of this person simply annoying and often what they say is simply not correct. One might well say that I should tell the person what I think about what he/she does. That is far too much effort than I care to spend on this with the person. So, I let it go. I do resent this person's corrections. They might recognize themselves in this post, but I know that they do no read my blog, so the coast is clear!
On my second point, I don't care about grammatical errors that are not being picked up by software spell checkers. Save your time correcting me.
Is there possibly something spiritual in these gentle rants? I think so. I began the process for writing this particular post backwards - I was thinking about people whom I really cherish. Then, I quickly morphed into people I do not cherish. (I am Irish so I tend to highlight the dark side) Why do I do this? I don't know. But I do do this. (don't correct this grammar!)
Generally, the people that I respect and love the most - are the ones whom I have known for decades. I am most comfortable with them. I value being with them. I do feel fulfilled when I am with them. These are cherished friends - who have made the decades far nicer for me than they may ever know.
I am not comfortable with instant friends. It is just not my comfort zone. But longtime friends. What a gift. Not sure why I am focusing on this today, but it feels right to mention. If you have such friends, cherish them - and never ever correct them!