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HL # 4938 Amazing Discovery
Posted April 26th, 2014 by Normand Bo...
Dear Gloria,
in http://www.heavenletters.org/amazing-discovery.html
parag. 2:
"I am an Amazing Discovery, wouldn’t you say? You wonder how an ordinary soul as you seems to think you are can possibly find enough to say about Me. Of course, you can. Truly, you have endless thoughts about Me. "
Of course, the "are" has to be removed. But I would tend to read the sentence as follow: " You wonder how an ordinary soul as you seems to think you CAN'T possibly find enough to say about Me. Of course, you can."
Does it make sense?
Thanks
a seemingly ordinary soul
~ There are some prominent, salient and auspicious utterings from some prominent, salient and auspicious persons, who say, that they can possibly find enough to say about Normand.
~ Uta seems to think, she is an ordinary soul.
~ Uta wonders how an ordinary soul - as Uta seems to think she is - can possibly find enough to say about Normand. Of course, she can. Truly, Uta has endless thoughts about Normand.
Theophil
Thanks Theophil, the
Thanks Theophil, the sentence is perfectly clear, so is your explanation. My mind was not that clear!
Wait, wait, the problem
Wait, wait, the problem seems to be in "seems".
"You wonder how an ordinary soul as you SEEMS to think you are can possibly find enough to say about Me." I believe "seems" was meant to be "seem", altho Gloria should decide.
Commas are not required grammatically but if I insert them it might make it easier to understand what I think was the original sense: "You wonder how an ordinary soul, as you seem to think you are, can possibly find enough to say about Me." Gloria might want to keep the commas in but she should decide.
Yes, indeed, we remove the
Yes, indeed, we remove the are.
I also see what you are saying.
There is a slight grammar thing that is awkward in this sentence.. I believe that the verb form "seems" is correct because the subject is "an ordinary soul" and not "you." Does this awkwardness get in the way?
"You wonder how an ordinary soul as you see yourself to be can possibly find enough to say about Me. Of course, you can. Truly, you have endless thoughts about Me. "
Part of me doesn't want to change a sentence too much. Your feedback will be appreciated.
The bathroom where I am living is getting a new floor and I will have to be out of the house. The present tile will be broken on, and I will be out of the house. Please understand a delay.
I can see now that this
I can see now that this sentence is grammatically correct. But its readibility would be easier if some commas were added. I know that we, French, are generous with the use of commas in order to avoid ambiguities in certain long and more complex sentences. In English, the tendency seems to be opposite: the commas are used minimally.
The problem here is: where to put the commas, and if it is acceptable in English.
I think, like Charles, that it would be easier if SEEM instead of SEEMS was used. Then it could be read:
"You wonder how an ordinary soul, as you SEEM to think you are, can possibly find enough to say about Me."
Hi, Normand. I sure love to
Hi, Normand. I sure love to see all the activity here!
Normand, do you have enough commas now, dear one?!
In English in America anyway, we have open and closed punctuation. I tend to go closed.
If I can get a chance to, I certainly ask my friend who is truly a grammarian what the true story is about seem or seems in this sentence.
Seem does seem more natural to us. Even if the "correct" answer is seem, I'm guessing that one day seems in that context just won't be any longer. There used to be a solid distinction between shall and will, and now it seems that shall has faded away.
I will bathe in so many
I will bathe in so many commas!
"There used to be a solid distinction between shall and will, and now it seems that shall has faded away."
I would add: there used to be a solid distinction between may and can and now it seems that may has faded away.
Yes, yes. There was a time
Yes, yes.
There was a time when could was couldst, and would wouldst.
I used to have an old cookbook. It was a recipe book of cooking in Chaucer's day. We have the word "seethe" today. We might say someone was seething in anger. However, in this cookbook, seething meant to boil something in the pot.
Here is the response from
Here is the response from Margaret who, in my experience, invariably knows her grammar:
***
Hello, dear Gloria, from my grammatical perspective, the are has to stay in! The only change would be to change seems to seem. You takes a plural verb. The sentence makes sense just as it is with that "s" on seems removed, I think. The meaning is maybe a little clearer if I put part of it in parentheses
"You wonder how an ordinary soul (as you seem to think you are) can possibly find enough to say about me. Of course, you can. Truly you have endless thoughts about me.
From my perspective, The "as you seem to think you are" is God's way of reminding us "you" that no one is an "ordinary" soul in God's eyes. I don't have any context to work with here, so this is just my best guess. Don't know how the question came up or from whom. In any case, the proposed substitution doesn't make any sense to me at all.
Loving you,
Margaret
***
I am glad to have been mistaken about the seem! That's what I get from trying to be a grammarian! Sometimes what sounds right is right.
But this was fun, Normand!
And I keep growing in the
And I keep growing in the English language!
And I too!
And I too!