From the Editor
Margaret Sadler | Editor-in-Chief , news & views , nveditor @ arta . net
Saturday night in the ’ 50s was bath night . Then , as the flannelette nightgown dropped over my head , I hoped that Father was lying on my side of the bed so it would be warm when I climbed in beside my sister . Father would read to us , the lights would go out , and the hum of our parents ’ conversation from the kitchen would lull us to sleep . Ah , comfort .
We use “ comfort ” in many ways . Comfort foods are hearty , filling , satisfying , and often familiar — more autumn and winter dishes , wouldn ’ t you say ? Those recipes that a mother made , no doubt without a recipe . Comfort clothes can be cuddly and close while still loose enough for easy movement . Autumn flannels and corduroy come to mind .
The Anglo-French root of “ comfort ” means “ to strengthen greatly ,” but consider the Hebrew word translated as “ comfort ” in “ Comfort ye my people ” — in this use , “ comfort ” means to sigh or breathe deeply . I like that . It reminds me of listening to Handel ’ s Messiah before Christmas year after year — certainly for me an experience of deep sighs . A state of spiritual comfort . Recently the Danish word hygge has become popular — a word apparently with no English equivalent , indicating coziness and contentment and involving roaring fires , candles , and blankets . More than those physical elements though , hygge suggests emotional comfort .
While we can create conditions for physical , emotional , and spiritual comfort , other comfort comes upon us unawares . Home , for example , can be far from one ’ s mailing address , yet can comfort us in certain times and places . It ’ s where we find pleasure and satisfaction , where contentment and security meet — not necessarily a place but a state of mind . Memories of home can be as comforting as the physical place itself . Memories of Mother ’ s cooking , Father ’ s voice , a flannelette nightgown , all tied together with Saturday night rituals become a meditative state of comfort . news & views AUTUMN 2021 | 9