First, a fun fact: catechize was first used in the sense of “to question” by Shakespeare in Othello (Act 3, Scene 4). Desdemona is looking for Cassio and she asks the Clown if he knows where to find him:
DESDEMONA: Can you inquire him out and be edified by report?
CLOWN: I will catechize the world for him, that is, make questions, and by them answer.
I was pretty stumped by this week’s word, until I reread the definition and saw the synonyms: interrogate, quiz, examine, probe. I decided then to concentrate on the question/probe part of the definition.
Every year about this time, I start working on my calendar design. And every year I try out some layouts that aren’t my usual 12-pages-with-haiku-and-design-that-fit-in-a-plastic-CD-case. Regardless of the layout and size, haiku is always an element, and one of the big challenges is to write poems that are worth reading and re-reading and contemplating for an entire month. For this week, I attempted to substitute pithy (but not too serious nor too silly) questions into my layout, rather than haiku.
The layout I’m working with groups the months into 4 sets of 3 months. For each set, there are 3 related collages that overlap by using longer and longer pages, so that the bottom of the 2nd and 3rd months can be seen while looking at the first month and the bottom of the 3rd month can be seen when viewing the 2nd. I mocked-up one set, April, May and June….
The challenge, though, was the questions. Here’s the three I came up with:
- What super-hero would you be, what would your costume look like & what would be your motto?
- What’s your first memory?
- What’s the nicest thing that anyone has ever said to you?
Next up:grouse, v; To grumble; complain.