There is an old African proverb that goes, “The axe forgets what the tree remembers.
Have you found this to be true in your life?
Often if you are at the blunt end of someone’s words or decisions, you are the tree that remembers the blow that has been dealt to you while the axe moves on to the next tree.
“The axe forgets what the tree remembers” is classified as an apothegm. Apothegm joins the club of words not pronounced the way that they are spelled, another notable word in this club is “Colonel.” No seriously, it should be spelled K-E-R-N-E-L.
Apothegm comes from the Greek word apothegma, which means “something clearly spoken or declared” and apophthengesthai, which means “to speak one’s opinion plainly.” I bet you can’t say apophthengesthai three times fast…
A single word or phrase can have a powerful impact on the way that we see ourselves and the world around us.
We know those quotes by people like Mandela, MLK, Gandhi, Franklin, Mother Theresa, Jobs, and many others.
Consider the wisdom of Aristotle that said, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
A terse and instructive remark can cause us to pause and rethink things. That is why we are taking a look at eight simple sayings that will change everything.
We are starting a new series, “Apothem: Eight Simple Sayings That Will Change Everything.” We are looking at significant stories from the Bible, in which people chose these simple sayings and how their lives were changed as a result.
Join us for this series during worship on Sundays or catch up with the series on the podcast during the week: https://www.ubc-br.org/podcast