Latin Saying Comes Full-circle
Dum spiro spero
While being shooed out by the staff during the mid-day closing at Montecassino Abbey, my husband was struck by the inscription on this marble plate mounted above an arch. He immediately pushed up his hand and showed me his Citadel college graduation ring, the words "Dum spiro spero" engraved in gold within the South Carolina's state shield, home to his alma mater
"What does it mean?" I curiously asked, as high school Latin lessons from years ago escaped me.
A slightly disappointed and baffled look crossed his face, eyes searching his head for an answer.
Experiencing one of those brain freezes when your mind refuses to spit out information normally resting on the tip of your tongue, he replied, "I just can't remember! I used to know everything on this ring, what each symbol represented" he expressed with frustration.
"Google it" was the solution we both concluded. And so we did that evening.
While I breathe, I hope.
The beauty of the translated Latin phrase struck me immediately. I repeated it several times aloud, letting the firm statement crystallize in my psyche.
What an elegant, inspiring statement for life.
Trifle arguments arise over the literal translation, some claiming it reads more like "as long as I breathe, I am hoping." The simple symmetry of the first rather than the latter would be my preference.
I think if there ever were a personal motto, this would come close.
Hope is a feeling that fills the heart and mind with an assurance that the future will be OK. It is more than wishful thinking, it is a commitment to believing the best will result, a faith in the necessity of the outcomes of life whatever they might be.
It is almost impossible in my opinion to describe hope without faith. Hope is an active belief, a state of mind and well-being. Many times, it requires a faith in something beyond ourselves or in circumstances outside our control. Having faith can give us hope and sustain a state of positive belief, otherwise there might be resignment or despair.
The Bible verse 1 Corinthians 13:13 says: "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." Hope, I learned, is considered one of the three virtues of salvation, and is once again linked with faith. Love has always been an essential component of worth-filled living, in my mind.
I know many are facing hard times now. The predictable accomplishments in life (go to college; get a job; buy a house; have financial security) are not quite as attainable, and certainly bad things have happened to good people who were just trying to do the right thing. I hope that hope finds you.
As Marion Zimmer Bradley wrote:
The road that is built in hope is more pleasant to the traveler than the road built in despair, even though they both lead to the same destination
I would add that either having hope or not MAY "lead to the same destination" believing that choosing hope may transform circumstances, leading to another destination all-together.
Either way, keep breathing, and have hope!
Wednesday, July 29, 2009 at 10:18AM
Reader Comments (2)
I so enjoyed this post, and had to tell you that "escape of latin lessons from high school" were definitely no fault of your own, but rather perhaps in the teaching! The only thing I retained is the ability to sing "O Come All Ye Faithful" in latin.
Adeste Fideles... Laeti triumphantes
Venite, venite in Bethlehem
Very useful stuff :-)
You learned more than me! hahaa.. Those classes were more fun with the classmates than learning!