*keh₂p–has many descendants, including haven and Havana (and thus habanero, if you like to grab it while it’s hot), and – through the Latin forms and via French – captive, capture, catch, and chase. Another is carpet, evidently through an association with carding wool.Ĭaptious, on the other hand, traces to Latin capto, ‘I grasp at’ or ‘I long for’, which traces in turn to capio ‘I seize, I take’, which traces to Proto-Indo-European *keh₂p–, ‘seize, grab’, which seems very much a vocal gesture of capture, like a fish biting its prey (again, not saying that’s the origin). One is excerpt (something cut out of something larger). This Latin carpo shows up in a few modern English words. I can almost hear those ancient iron shears clipping grape stems: “kerp, kerp, kerp.” (I am not saying that the word is originally onomatopoeic. The verb carpe, imperative of carpo, meaning ‘seize’ or also ‘pluck, tear, criticize, erode’, traces to Proto-Indo-European *kerp–, which has a sense of harvesting or cutting. Which leads to an obviously important question: is carp as in ‘complain’ related to carpe diem and/or to captious? And do fish come into this? The etymology of all this turns out to be about as interwoven as a carpet, and it has threads of many words, but I’ll try to keep focused on an excerpt. It’s also a piece of a different language, so don’t be captious. Yes, I know my use of carpe diem as infinitive complement was grammatically incoherent, since it’s an imperative. Do not let opportunity pass you by - go out and look for how you can positively impact your life and others!Ĭheers to remembering to “Carpe diem.” Seize the day + Seize the opportunity.You can carpe diem, or you can carp all day long. Live for today, fight your fears, and even take that risk you have always been considering! Don’t be paralyzed by fear and too hyper-focus on how it will affect your future that you just don't do it. You never know what the next day can bring, and you do not want to have your future self saying "Oh, I regret that I never did that" or "I wish.". Live your life to its fullest potential, and take nothing for granted. However, just know, that even though it may be interpreted differently by all, at the end of the day, all of the meanings line up. So, with all of this said, take the meaning of Carpe Diem as you wish. So, do yourself a favor (at least once in awhile) pause your thoughts about what's to come, and just live in the moment. You will regret it when you are looking back from the future, seeing all the fun times that you missed out on. If we are constantly thinking about our futures and what to do now to make sure that you are prepared for the future, you aren't going to make any new memories. If you don't live in the present time and truly live in each moment of your day, you are going to miss out on so much more than you think.Įvery day is a different opportunity to learn something new and make new memories. However, you have to also focus on the here and now. I am not saying that it is not important to think about the future - it is certainly justified and necessary. I'm sure that I am not the only one who is guilty of focusing on the future, right?! Whether it be constantly, or a majority of the time, I can’t help but have my thoughts occupied in what’s to come. Carpe Diem by definition means to “make the most of the present time and give little thought to the future,” or originally defined as “Seize the Day”.Ĭhoosing this tattoo meant a lot to me, because there are many times in my life that I catch myself ignoring the present - focusing solely on the future and what needs to happen in order to make that happen.
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