The Second

I am re-reading for at least the 4 th time The Four Loves , by C. S. Lewis.   Once again I met the chapter on Affection, bathing in the warm embrace of this love’s character, happily recalling times in my past where Affection held me close, but sometimes aching from memories when Affection seemed sorely absent.   This love wears a humble shape while yet causing relationships to glow from within.   But without missing a beat, Lewis draws the painful figures of misused Affection, and of the hurt brought on when this love turns dark.   As he does with each of the loves, Lewis shows in detail that Affection “…having become a god, becomes a demon. [1] ”   In current culture the relationship bond between a man and woman sits at center of our vision of the good, full, and happy life.   For as long as I can remember every influence held out hope for me to find the one special person, the “soul mate,” the one who would somehow make everything make sense.  ...

The last time I heard the word "husbandry" was about 20 years ago when asking my fellow sandwich maker at the university restaurant what he was studying.  He said, "Animal Husbandry."  My wonder at the coupling of "husband" with "animal" has not ceased, primarily by having planted an extremely important verb into my mind: "to husband" That idea alone blossomed into a rich image only slightly grasped in the following etymology given by the free on-line dictionary:     from Old Norse húsbóndi ‘master of a house,’     from hús ‘house’ + bóndi ‘occupier and tiller of the soil.’     The original sense of the verb was ‘till, cultivate.’ Granted, the verb “to husband” is never used.  Nevertheless this original concept of cultivating seems to be the key missing idea from today’s noun.  I can only speculate how this verb also happens to associate with marriage, but it would seem to be an ancient idea.  And this seemin...