The marathon...

By Vichara

We are all given stewardship of many and important things in our lifetime, our thoughts, the environment, love, wisdom, the tangible and the intangible. And like a marathon runner with this “baton”, we must safeguard that which has been given to us and safely pass it off to the next generation / runner. If we inadvertently drop the baton we need to find the strength and resources to pick it up and rise to the occasion until our segment of this race is done. Realize and be cognizant that you are not alone. There are many other runners, some in front, some behind and some right next to you. Cheer and encourage all that are around you for this is not a race to be won, but to survive.

periphrasis • \puh-RIFF-ruh-sis\ • noun
1 : use of a longer phrasing in place of a possible shorter form of expression
2 : an instance of periphrasis

Example Sentence:
The college English teacher warned her students against padding their essays with periphrases solely to reach the required length.

Did you know?
It's easy enough to point out the origins of "periphrasis": the word was borrowed into English in the early 16th century via Latin from Greek "periphrazein," which in turn comes from the prefix "peri-," meaning "all around," and the verb "phrazein," "to point out." Two common descendants of "phrazein" in English are "phrase" and "paraphrase," the latter of which combines "phrazein" with the prefix "para-," meaning "closely resembling." Another "phrazein" descendant is the less familiar word "holophrasis," meaning "the expression of a complex of ideas in a single word or in a fixed phrase." (The prefix "holo-" can mean "completely.")