Word every Gracious Individual should know: Meraki
Definition: Meraki (pronounced: may-rah-kee); Greek; adjective
1. To do something with soul, creativity, or love.
2. To put “something of yourself” into what you’re doing.
*Note: There is no English equivalent for this word. Meraki is, unsurprisingly, untranslatable.
Why we love this word?
For those who don't know, Greek is my first language. Being taught everything I know from my grandmother, whom I am named after, I have grown a new found appreciation towards life and others because I have learned to think in another language. And to those who can speak and understand multiple languages, you know the importance to embrace every facet of yourself and the world. In Greek, there is a word for the way we do things for those we love. That word is meraki. This is a word that modern Greeks often use to describe what happens when you leave a piece of yourself (your soul, creativity, or love) in your work. When you love doing something that you put your entire self into, the love and happiness shows. The gracious being of your soul shines through and it manifests into the world.
Photograph by Joshua Allen Harris
Definition: Meraki (pronounced: may-rah-kee); Greek; adjective
1. To do something with soul, creativity, or love.
2. To put “something of yourself” into what you’re doing.
*Note: There is no English equivalent for this word. Meraki is, unsurprisingly, untranslatable.
Why we love this word?
For those who don't know, Greek is my first language. Being taught everything I know from my grandmother, whom I am named after, I have grown a new found appreciation towards life and others because I have learned to think in another language. And to those who can speak and understand multiple languages, you know the importance to embrace every facet of yourself and the world. In Greek, there is a word for the way we do things for those we love. That word is meraki. This is a word that modern Greeks often use to describe what happens when you leave a piece of yourself (your soul, creativity, or love) in your work. When you love doing something that you put your entire self into, the love and happiness shows. The gracious being of your soul shines through and it manifests into the world.
Photograph by Joshua Allen Harris