Tuesday's Trifles   "Great Things Come in Little Packages"

In case you haven't caught on by now, I love words!  I especially love words that sound like what they mean, that when you speak or write them, they immediately bring their meaning alive.  Oh sure, there are the obvious ones, like "boom," "buzz," and "hiss."  But, I love the ones that are more subtle than that.  "Trifle" is one of these words.  Say it aloud...doesn't it just sound like the first definition you'll find in your Webster's?  Trifle: something of little value or importance; an insignificant amount.  Can't you just hear Lord Grentham of Downton Abbey fame dismissing a member of his staff with a curt, "In future, do not bother me with such a trifle."   If you drag out your old linen-clothed Webster's like mine (or consult a dictionary on The Web) and look up "trifle," you'll find that it actually has a slew of meanings, mostly related  to its primary one, but it is a word rich with possibility.  In fact, trifle is also a verb, meaning to speak with an intent to mock or jest.  Now, can't you hear the late Lady Diana pleading with Prince Charles, "Don't trifle with me, Charles!!"   In short, "trifle" is not to be trifled with!  (nor was Lady Diana, by the way!)

And speaking of those clever Brits...they borrowed the word, brilliantly turned it on its head, and gave it to one of their famous desserts, the "English Trifle," a delicious and enormous stacked confection of sponge cake, jams, berries, and gobs of fresh whipped cream!  I love what the Brits did with this...so tongue in cheek, as if eating 3,000 calories and 88 grams of sugar and fat is nothing to fret over...it's just a trifle of a dessert, afterall!!  And I love how they attached such richness, lushness, and satisfaction to a word whose every other definition relates to littleness, insignificance, triviality and frivolousness.  

It makes me wonder if we can plant our tongue firmly in cheek and do the same?  Can we remind ourselves of the old saying in the title above and welcome all the little packages in our lives, and open them with this greatness in mind?  I suspect our days would be richer if we could taste every seemingly "trifle" of happiness, humor, or satisfaction that comes our way as an enormous, satisfying, enjoyable spoonful of life, dripping with cream and berries!  Turn those happy trifles on their heads and elevate them to be the great things they are!   The parking place where and when you need it, the great laugh someone gives you, the item you need for dinner on sale, the unexpected smile from a stranger... I know it sounds trite, even trivial, but believe me, I'm not trifling with you!

Thanks for reading.  Let it steep!