Artist: Rueland Frueauf the YoungerToday is the feast day of St. Francis de Sales who wrote Introduction to the Devout Life.
Here a few things he said that are worth thinking about:
You learn to speak by speaking, to study by studying, to run by running, work byworking and just so, you learn to love by loving. All those who think to learn in any other way deceive themselves.I like them all - especially the last one.
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There was never an angry man that thought his anger unjust.
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We must never undervalue any person. The workman loves not that his work should be despised in his presence. Now God is present everywhere, and every person is His work.
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You've given us great wisdom today Ellie - thanks to both you and St. Francis de Sales.
ReplyDeleteAndie
I'm glad these were meaningful to you, Andie.
ReplyDeleteWe undervalue people by choosing not to know their name. It is often interesting to note how we choose who is "important" by whose name we know. Just a thought.
ReplyDeleteCarolyn L.
I've always been aware of the importance of knowing people's names. I am aware that I have several problems that prevent me from learning the names of new people I meet. The first is probably my own self-consciousness. When I meet someone and ask their name, as likely as not, instead of listening when they tell me, I'm thinking about the next thing I will say. In other words it's never been a natural gift for me to feel at ease with people. Second, I have discovered that I have very little "cache" memory and that my circuits for accessing certain types of memory, especially those that have to do with details, don't function well.
ReplyDeleteI googled types of computer memory and found the following:
the CPU accesses memory according to a distinct hierarchy. Whether it comes from permanent storage (the hard drive) or input (the keyboard), most data goes in random access memory (RAM) first. The CPU then stores pieces of data it will need to access, often in a cache.
I hate it when I can't remember someone's name. I am aware that people feel devalued when I don't remember their names and I hate that. After I've asked the second time I am too ashamed to ask a third time.
I remember people's names when I spend time with them and interact. But, even then, unlike the teacher who remembers her students years after they've been in her class, I forget people's names when I've been away from them for a significant period.
My ability to remember someone's name is directly proportional to the amount and quality of my intimacy in sharing some aspect of life with them.