America - A Rich New Year's Resolution


Despite the materialistic wonders of the present day which dazzle and excite us, we still unknowingly live in a relatively dark time, the Kali Yuga. Material wealth is only one sign of advancement.

Fortunately, the now unfolding Age of Aquarius will lead us eventually into an Era of Goodwill and Heightened Consciousness. That is our Karma and our Opportunity. It is inevitable. The big question is, “How long will it take?”

The United States of America is a focal point of that Destiny. (As America goes, so goes the world.) We are only beginning to move in that direction. Discovering the New World, developing technology, creating a land of Liberty and Representative Government are just starters.

The American flag speaks of our past and hints also of our future, shaky as it now seems. The symbolism of the very name of our country tells a similar story.

Historians say that America was named for the explorer Amerigo Vespucci. I was never convinced of that. It seems too easy and lacks meaning. Besides, how many countries were ever named for people other than kings? If we had named our country for an explorer, we should now be Columbia as the nation is occasionally called in poetry and the like.

Being a fellow who plays with words and ideas, I have thought quite a bit about this country’s name. I have come to my own conclusion based on languages and what I believe the essence of America to be.

I divide the word in two.

Part one - AME. I believe this to be a variation on the word AMO. It’s the first word a student learns in Latin class. Amo means I Love (present tense). AMEM means I Should Love (present subjunctive). The first phrase you learn in Latin is Ego Te Amo. I Love You. So, I just drop the second M on AMEM.

Part two - RICA. Rica means RICH in Spanish which language is derived from Latin. For example, Costa Rica means Rich Coast.

So, I put those two together and come up with - for me - an obvious meaning: I Love Richly or I Should Love Richly. When I told this to someone a while ago, he came up back with another. He said, “America could mean I Love Riches.” As many Americans do.

I prefer I Love Richly. If we do that, we fulfill the call of the Bible and many other holy writings - Love your neighbor - Love one another - Do unto others.

Sadly, there seems to be a permanent struggle in America and the world between those who covet Mammon and others who serve God, those who seek Riches and those who give Richly, the Greedy and the Generous.

With the New Year upon us, we who now live in the Richest Country in the World may wish to re-think our own part in the state of America. We all have a bit of Greed in us, if not more. At the same time, we can all learn to be more Generous - in the best sense of the word. Certainly, in spirit if not always in material means.

Giving within our own little circle is a place to start, but can we not expand the larger circle of which we are naturally part to include the Greater Self and the many selves (all our relations).

Consider for a moment or two on how you can help change America from the Land of the Free and the Home of the Greedy to the Land where people Love Richly.

Addendum:

As I was uploading this newsletter to the website prior to sending out the email, I thought to myself, “I have friends in Honduras. They know about Spanish and Latin things. Maybe they would have some comments.”

Well, Amy and Gerardo did. More than I can use for this article. What follows are condensed back and forth notes after I sent the essence of the article to them.

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Mi amigo Roberto,  we certainly agree with you on the latin meanings of the words ame and rico. . ."I love riches" .  In our opinion, that name "ame rica" would be more fitting for the visitors to the land (the europeans) looking for material riches rather than the natives of "america" .  Here is an interesting article we found. . .a lot of really interesting information, especially the paragraph I highlighted in red. [Le Plongeon, anthropologist, wrote: "The name AMERICA or AMERRIQUE in the Mayan language means, a country of perpetually strong wind, or the Land of the Wind, and sometimes the suffix '-ique' and '-ika' can mean not only wind or air but also a spirit that breathes, life itself."]

Also, America in numerology has a number of "3" and there are 3 Americas.

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How about some direct questions?

Does ame mean I love in Spanish? Tense? Does it mean I do love, should love, etc?

Rico or rica, can they be adjectives, adverbs as well as nouns?

Could one say, "Ame rico"?

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The verb "to love" in spanish is amar. . .so in this case, ame  (the e should have an accent above it) is first person, past tense. . .i loved. ame (without accents) is first and or third person (I, she, he) in present subjunctive. Yo quiero que el ame las estrellas. . .translation = I want him to love the stars.

Rico, Rica, are adjectives meaning rich, wealthy, or abundant. also, rich in flavor and tasty. As a noun, rico (a) is a rich person. (those definitions came directly from my Webster's New Spanish-English dictionary!!!)

Ame is also used in a second person formal command, present tense.   Ame las estrellas.  = you love the stars.  this is a command to love the stars in the present moment. 

However, the common use  and most popular use of rico is for flavor and pleasure talking about food and women. :-)   rico is also (albeit rarely) used just to describe someone that is rich.  the guy is rich = el hombre es rico. 

One could say, "ame rico"  . . .translation = I loved with deep pleasure. . .beyond that, there's not really a proper and accurate translation into English.  Keep in mind that certain letters with similar sounds  may have changed over time and "ame" and "rico" may not have been how the "natives" spelled it or pronounced it.

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I am wondering if people down your way say, Yo soy el Americano. Or is that just the Macho Americano del Norte. (The Ugly American certainly doesn't refer to Hondurans or Panamanians.)

If that is so, then the ideas take on extra meanings if one lives south of the Rio Grande. Being little traveled out of the US, I have somehow thought that the USA has claimed America as its own name. And, other people who live on this side of the world don't use the title.

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-Funny stuff. . .only in the United States (or rather Los Estados Unidos) do we claim "america" to mean the united states.  everywhere else we (the country) is known as Los Estados Unidos.  However, in Central  and South America for sure,  we are called gringos, gringas, and in Europe and Asia we are called Americans. We Americans are pretty conceited in the fact that we think we are the only "america"!!!  So surprising of "americans" is it not? haha.

de nada,
el latino y la gringa

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Muchas Gracias to Amy (Ame) Van Tilburg and Gerardo Alexander Welchez

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