There was a vigorous discussion about Latin out on the balcony this morning. A bit chill and gray skies that suggest the onset of moisture falling from the sky.  Well, actually the vigor was more about something called ‘grammar.’ That would normally start with a lower-case letter unless it referred to your Mom’s Mom, both correctly capitalized. That is closer to the way the Romans would have used their language, although they used chisels banged on stone (or marble) so the proper expression (the Latin ‘ex’= ‘Out from”) so the proper process took them a little longer.

Rather, the conversation referred to the way some of their Roman words have survived whether we understand them or not. We talked about how that works in modern times. We like the ‘equal’ and ‘equity’ issue. They each could have a capital ‘E’ for emphasis, or a lower case to indicate they are just ordinary words unless they start a sentence. Or if you want to indicate that one has more importance than the other one.

In this case, what sparked the topic was the single two-syllable word “advent.” There was an immediate discussion about the first letter of that term. Splash naturally was the first to quibble. “If you are describing the word in the context of the beginning of the holiday season, it should be Capitalized.”

We wondered about the emphasis he put on the last word in his sentence, which was a vocal equivalent of using the “shift” key to insert a larger character to connote the association with organized liturgical observance.

Buck is more orderly in his approach than the rest of the Old Salts due to his academic credentials as an Economist, a trade properly capitalized. He quickly ran an index finger across the screen of the iPad he carries until it is time to switch to direct keyboard operations on the laptop. That transition normally indicates the start of his working day, since it is more difficult to wave the computer in the air for emphasis. It is heavier, which could be muttered in italics for emphasis.

“Here it is,” he said. “Ad-vent. It uses the first syllable the Romans used to describe motion “toward,” or “to.” Vent is a syllable that implies “motion” of some sort from their word ‘venti.’ So the word, with both syllables jammed together, means something is coming toward us.”

Loma smiled. “Does that mean an advent-ure? Advent is a noun which has only two syllables, both conveying meaning. With the accent marks in the online dictionary, we can’t pronounce it the way it looks.” He held up his Kindle device and waved it gently, signifying a peaceful association of his words and electronics. The words on the screen of the device were small enough that only Melissa and Rocket were able to see them.

Melissa smiled, since she regularly attended church- we are not sure if it is appropriately capitalized, since we try to avoid denominational issues- over at Racoon Ford on Sundays. She had no tablet for reference, and said: “In regular order, without religious reference, it means the “coming or arrival of something or someone worthy of note. That could include anything including a pizza delivery.”

“No one is ordering pizza this early, and it also could be construed as an incorrect minimalization of a term with a distinct religious association, not a pepperoni topping. These days everyone is paying more attention to the nuance of that aspect of life in any context.”

Splash looked a little nervous about that assertion. “You could put everyone in italics. Is there a website that updates what we can talk about and what we can’t every morning? I get a little dizzy with the changes each day. I don’t want to be accused of phobic behavior about anything.”

“We understand that your apprehension is a stigma associated with your Patriarchal upbringing that would require capitalization of all sorts of words. Or Decapitalization, if it is a specific act intended to denote demotion. Therefore, if we are talking about a general liturgical event, you can say it without capitals. If it is a specific one, the tall letters should be used.”

“Couldn’t we use italics to convey a certain sense of ironic importance?”

“There is no irony intended, though importance would be appropriate by using a capital ‘L’ in the liturgical word. Isn’t that why they say computer passwords are case-sensitive?”

He nodded, pleased we were in general agreement about the grammatical issue, and since we were not speaking about any particular General, and it could go lower case.

“Or with one, if you are trying to demonstrate respect. Which may deflect some criticism. So, there is an appropriate secular usage of the term. For the purposes of wishing a respectful holiday period, you can say it with or without capitals.”

“Fair enough,” said Melissa, who is relatively devout though she insists on no changes to that word. She is observant in using the term ‘Western churches,’ since the ‘W’ is capitalized but not the ‘c’ since it refers not specifically to a lower-case direction but a specific global region.”

“But the reference is to a specific holiday associated with a joyful event. That means we should say it with capital letters.”

That provoked nods along the chairs located parallel to the balcony’s concrete barrier. Buck provided some guidance. “We can say it with capitals if we remind folks that we are in accordance with doctrinal requirements when we put it in writing.”

There were more nods. Splash looked relieved, since he hates typos. “So, if I say it properly we are all set. It is not specifically a grammar issue but one of punctuation, right? I could even blame other grammatical rules if I used the word as the first one in a sentence like this: Advent begins in some Western churches on the fourth Sunday before Christmas and in Eastern churches in mid-November, and is observed by many followers as a season of prayer, fasting, and penitence, and celebrates the coming of Jesus at the Incarnation.”

“You could use italics. The specific Day, Month, Direction and the proper name are all capitalized properly and with respect for grammatical, secular  and liturgical purposes.”

There was a group sigh. “Why don’t we just say it with emphasis. We could do it with a slight increase in volume, articulating it assertively. MERRY CHRISTMAS is the way we can put it in The Daily, using capital letters and bold font to identify our work as both a discrete and important project.”

We were all relieved, since a simple solution seemed to be at hand. We note, this morning, the advent of Advent a few days ago. And we fully mean to commemorate our respect and joy not only with a capital letter, but bolded, with larger font at the front and in italics:

“Merry Christmas!”

Splash frowned. “Shouldn’t that actually be Happy Advent? I didn’t say it in italics.” The group laughed, since it is a widely held view that he always speaks in italics, with no need for amplification with capital letters or slanted-to-the-right script. That is something else we probably should talk about sometime, but it is starting to drift from breakfast to thoughts of lunch, you know? We can drink at lunch, and that is even better than italics. Even bold ones.

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