I grew up with a mom who was a big reader and a amateur actress. One of her 'things' was to quote books, poems, and plays at appropriate times, and a few have stuck with me for all these years. For instance, every time there was a thick fog while vacationing on the shore in Maine, she would pull out this ancient megaphone and call out "Ahoy the Pequod". We kids would die of embarrassment, but it never grew old for her. Her favorite joke had a punchline based on Keats' poem "On First Looking Into Chapman's Homer". Trust me, you don't really want to hear the joke, but the punchline is the last line of the poem. If you really are interested, drop by my office, and I will share.
But like so many things, I seem to have inherited that tendency to use quotes in every day life, but somewhat changed from her tasteful sharing of the classics. I tend towards quotes from songs and popular culture, and can generally punctuate most interactions with a line (I am careful to do so in my head only). Just today, when preparing the monthly newsletter, I was reminded of a recent situation that just begged for a sharing of the classic Bert and I quote: You can't get there from here. (We were big Bert and I fans, as a family)
We like to imagine that we are clever enough to produce witty and entertaining conversation without a script, but sometimes using a well placed quote can immeasurably enrich an interaction. Not only does it immediately create a shared experience, it adds layers to the conversation - sure, saying "You can't get there from here" is a fitting comment, but if all involved are aware of the source, the story that the quote is from becomes part of the current experience making it funnier, more poignant, or more memorable.
Lucky that a library is just the place to come across a perfect quote - whether in books, movies, or music. And as much as I am dying to, I refuse to work in a quote from The Terminator here.
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