I just got to thinking about words. We use them every day. Written or spoken, we can’t get along without them. So, with all the beautiful words to choose from, why do some of us use ugly, degrading, base words? Is it to get a reaction? To show that we’re really up with the times? Or is it because our vocabularies are a few sizes too small, like the Grinch’s heart?
Little Sand Lake by Missy Albrecht
Some words are lovely in themselves. Vespers is one of those words. Vespers are prayers sung or said in the late afternoon, evening worship. The very sound of this word brings feelings of peace. An assurance that God has been with us through the day and won’t forsake us now that night is coming.
So many beautiful words are out of date, as old-fashioned as the horse and buggy. Nevertheless they are words that are rich in meaning and beauty.
Vespers brings to mind other words too: eventide, the time after the sun sets; gloaming, a Scottish or Irish word meaning evening dusk; and twilight, the soft light just after sunset.
In the Gloaming, written in 1877 by Meta Orred and Annie F. Harrison is a gentle song about love and the ending of day. It begins, In the gloaming, oh my darling, when the lights are dim and low; And the quiet shadows falling, softly come and softly go… Click on the link and have a listen.
Tonight the quiet shadows will still come and go softly, the evening lights will grow dim and low as the day takes its leave. It will be a time for quiet reflection, a time for vespers.
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