Original oil painting by: Grandfather’s wife
An early 19th century liberal education mandated studies in classical literature, now abandoned — and sometimes scorned — in most “universities.”
Grandfathers Father, Ralph the First, studied for the ministry at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, where Greek and Hebrew were part of the curriculum. Grandfather was about four years old.
Ralph the First would pace the floor, reciting his lessons and, as youngsters that age do, Grandfather absorbed it and was a source of amusement from time to time, pacing the floor and reciting Greek and Hebrew.
But it didn’t stick and Grandfather remembers none of it now. But, virtuous soul that he is, he does remember a little of the Latin he studied in high school: amo, amas, amat, amamus, amatis, amant (that is: I love, you love, he/she loves, etc.).
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About the Author: RD Blakeslee is an octogenarian in West Virginia who built his net worth by only investing in that which can be enjoyed during acquisition and throughout life, as opposed to papers in a drawer, like stocks and bonds. You can read more about him here.
Photos: Courtesy of the Blakeslee Family
I remember Mrs. Mullis, my high school Latin teacher, dancing around the classroom, clapping and stomping as she sang amo amas amamus amatis amant and eram eras erat eramus eratis erant.
Personally, I’d be much happier if the schools taught such exotic things as penmanship, math, and how to show up for work on time.
Jason, WolfStreet.com’s commentary has a regular who posts as “Paulo”. He thinks as you and I do and his posts are always interesting. There are so few of us represented in the financial blogs that, when we find a kindred spirit, it’s worth noting.
Re the things you’d like to see taught: I remember penmanship from the first grade – carefully formed connected cursive letters. But, very few anymore do what Li’l Abner (In Al Capp’s comic strip “Dogpatch” ca. 1935 – early fifties) called “Writ by hand!” I agree about math, but would settle for ordinary arithmetic.
Showing up (anywhere) on time has been mostly a skill taught within the family and, since families are (deliberately) on the way out, promptness will remain a lost virtue, I think.
Every age has had its contemporary “conventional wisdom”.
Just now, it’s how to take the WOO HOO! halo bug. Officiously:
“Pro tip: Scrub wet hands with soap for at least 20 seconds (humming the “Happy Birthday” song twice), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends.”
https://www.axios.com/coronavirus-protect-yourself-handwashing-912482f1-cbdb-489f-bb5d-3ad4b6150382.html
Maybe we should sing “Ring Around the Rosie” while washing hands – it is said to have been sung during the great plagues of Europe in centuries past.
http://www.sewerhistory.org/miscellaneous/the-history-of-a-nursery-rhyme-ring-around-the-rosie/