Dorothy said, "If you look up laconic in the dictionary you will find Webster's picture there."
Of course I went to the library as soon as I could and of course Webster's picture wasn't really in the dictionary, but I did learn that laconic means basically that he is a man of few words. And it's true. He will just stand or sit and listen to the person talking to him and if he does have any comment it is usually in the form of a question. To find out more about what the person is saying, doncha know? When he does come out with a declaration it usually borders on the profound.
One day last year I overheard a conversation between Webster and a stranger in town.
"Good morning, sir," said the stranger.
Webster just smiled.
"I'm thinking of moving here. What are the people like?"
Webster struggled out a question. "What are they like where you live now?"
"Oh, they are terrible. My neighbor is so nosy she reports everything I do to my wife. The people at the church are against everything. The schools want the kids to follow unusually difficult rules that make it hard for parents to have time to pursue things they are interested in. The city council actually gets the police to hand out fines if you don't keep your yard mowed. You can't blow your horn in the city limits. Throw one little coffee cup out the window of your car and you're as much as a criminal. I can't wait to get out of there."
"Well, I think you'll find the people around here just like those where you're coming from," said Webster.
No comments:
Post a Comment