The Second Month I am very much in the habit of writing abbreviations for the months rather than the whole word, (with maybe the exception of may, june and july, I am not that lazy), so I wasn't too surprised when I realized I had forgotten how to spell february. I began repeating the word over and over again as a penance and to solidify the correct spelling in my mind, and rediscovered something I had come across in childhood and had since forgotten. It is this: If you repeat a word over and over again quickly, it will soon sound so ridiculous that you must stop or you will laugh. The quick repetition makes the whole absurdity of making sounds with your mouth wholly apparent, and it is only by sprinkling words in between others, and a decline in certain kinds of playful introspection that we avoid this in our adult lives. Why this is the case, I don't really know, but I have my suspicions. Saying a word again and again requires mindfulness to things that are best (by that I mean performed more fluidly) left unattended. Laughter is a defense mechanism, to keep us attending to other things for which close inspection is more appropriate. Without humor, these repetitions swell to maddening proportions, and absurdity conquers all. Sartre was rumored to stay up all night (on several occasions) repeating german colloquialisms, and Camus had a paper consuming habit in which he would strike the same five keys on his typewrite, in the same order, repeatedly. When one has mastered the repetition of a word, can days or lives be far behind? I will, from now on, refer to it as the second month.

-- Patrick James Drew