May 8, 2004

Commonplace Book

Okay, peeps, I've gone a little nuts.

I have been a whirlwind of activity all day - it's been awesome - and I came across my "commonplace book", in doing spring cleaning. My "commonplace book" is just a small notebook filled with quotes, I've kept it for years, adding quotes, excerpts, things I like, whatever. It is a mishmash. 5,000 different kinds of pens are represented.

Recently, I read a biography of Thomas Jefferson and he, like many men of his generation, kept a "Commonplace Book" throughout his life. He had over 10,000 entries. Now that's nuts. But his Commonplace Book has been pored over for significance - it is obvious his concerns, what interests him, when you look at the quotes he excerpted.

So that's what I'm gonna do below.

List out a smattering of the quotes I have in my Commonplace Book. Many of them are quite unexpected.

As will be obvious, they reflect my concerns, my interests: acting, art, literature, poetry, science, the nature of time, etc. Some I wrote down just because I thought they were comical and wanted to remember them. (The Jack Warner quote is an example.)

Some are 4 words long. Other are a couple of paragraphs.

If you have no interest in reading quotes, then just skip today, and I'll see you tomorrow. But I have a bunch of friends (and family) who are "quote-collecters" themselves, and so this is for them.

Maybe you'll find something in here you recognize, or something that will spark some discussion, or something you will want to add to your own Commonplace Book.

I haven't looked through that book in a couple of years. Running into some of these old quotes was like meeting an old friend.

Posted by sheila
Comments

Holy Mackerel! I've never even heard of a commonplace book. The responses, let alone the posts, will probably be a book. I'm such a shallow SOB.

Posted by: Dave E. at May 8, 2004 10:05 PM

That is in essence a true reflection of you. That Commonplace book will give you such a deep insight as you read through it once again discovering how you view your own personal growth. You are now looking and receiveing it in a different light.

Posted by: Janellle at May 9, 2004 4:11 AM

Sheila -- I was going through some of my old papers from my poetry and drama classes (written drama - I've never taken stage drama). My teacher was this eccentric guy - you would have LOVED him - who would scribble us these long, rambling notes of quotes and ideas. They were scatterd, but somehow had a pattern, if that makes any sense. As I was reading them, I was soooo thinking you would love this stuff. I'm gonna make some copies and send them to you.

Posted by: Emily at May 9, 2004 11:14 AM

Oh Emily: gimme gimme!!

Posted by: red at May 9, 2004 2:08 PM

Would you mind sharing the title of the Jefferson biography that you read? I enjoy biographies and would like to read it. I've read the recent John Adams and Ben Franklin biographies and Jefferson was right there with them.

I enjoy your Commonplace entries.

Thank you!

Posted by: Darren at May 10, 2004 12:13 AM

I think it was just Thomas Jefferson: A Life. By a man with 3 names - something like Willard Sterne Bernard. Let me look it up. He also wrote the biography of Al;exander Hamilton I recently read. I like his writing style

Posted by: red at May 10, 2004 9:54 AM

They're on the way, Sheila.

Posted by: Emily at May 10, 2004 10:19 AM

So you stopped when your keyboard actually caught fire?

All kidding aside, a commonplace book is a neat idea. Thanks for posting all of this.

Posted by: Ken Hall at May 10, 2004 10:39 AM

Red - Just saw this post.
Much amazing and wondrous stuff here - it would have taken me a week just to type it all out. This sort of thing is far more revelatory than talking about oneself could ever be, and what's revealed of the author in this particular case is deeply compelling.

Exceptionally well done...

Posted by: MikeR at May 10, 2004 6:36 PM

Very Cool, Sheila. During my brief stint in the seminary we were taught to keep little note pads and pens in our pockets at all times. They called them "Lumina Books." The idea was that throughout the day we are graced with little insights or "lights" that we should note and reflect on later in the week during times of silence and during our daily meditations. We were encouraged to let nothing slip by us. No moment, breath, thought or inspiration was to be squandered.

This is very cool that you've kept all of these things. Maybe I'll start to make use of those blank journals I'm always getting for gifts. Thanks for the inspiration.

Posted by: Patrick at May 11, 2004 1:11 AM