Lockdown - Day 44

CHAPTER ONE

On March 22, an old friend of mine sent me a video clip put together by three guys in their twenties who had decided to write songs about the lockdown in order to fend off boredom. They went on to record themselves playing the tunes on their Barcelona rooftop and share the clips on Instagram. Fortunately, they were smart enough to also put the clips on YouTube. They go by Stay Homas.

I was really impressed with the quality of the music and the general feel-good vibe that the trio gives off, but, true to form, I couldn’t help myself and texted back “it's a pity that confination is a nonword”. Yes. Lockdown or quarantine would have been perfect choices. Unfortunately, these three musicians didn't bother to use a dictionary. So on March 23 they uploaded "Got To Be Patient" to their YouTube channel. Are you curious about the tune? If you are you can check it out below this very line.

CHAPTER TWO

On April 3 a different friend sent me a link to this article on New Yorker magazine, which, surprisingly enough, features the happy-go-lucky Stay Homas. I was quick to notice that the journalist had also realized the fact that confination is not an actual word, but he thought that “it still sounded good: `I got to be patient, so let’s enjoy this confination' ”. I then learned that the Stay Homas had made a point of writing one quarantine song every single day. I loved the idea.

So. Let's get to the linguistic side of all this. Is the American journalist right? The answer is: ABSOLUTELY. The word is technically wrong, of course, but only technically. And that, my dear students, is the beauty of a language, any language. If a large enough number of people choose to use a made-up term it eventually will join that ocean of concepts we call vocabulary. Such is the fate of certain neologisms. Strange as it may seem, there was a time when people thought of words like the noun brunch or the verb to google as useless preposterous inventions. Would it be possible for confination to become a real word?

CHAPTER THREE

Just a few hours ago I was watching the news on Televisión Española when something unexpected made my jaw drop to the floor. World famous crooner Michael Bublé has recorded a version of "Got To Be Patient". As I enjoyed the start of the video clip I wondered if the Canadian singer would use the nonexistent word or replace it with a more elegant synonym. Well, he left the line untouched and sang "let's enjoy this confination". Whoever edited the YouTube video thought it wise to insert a sort of Pulp-Fiction-esque trigger warning explaining how the term confination, albeit rare and nonstandard, is indeed a word. Such a priceless, wonderful spin! Now, isn't that a truly happy ending for the three creative Catalans? 

MORAL OF THE STORY

I know the metaphor is old and trite, but the truth is every language is "a living creature". It is speakers not institutions that make language change happen. Serendipitous mistakes sometimes become accepted expressions while great ideas fall by the wayside. Whatever its reasons, change is unstoppable. So be a part of it! Cherish the language you are learning. Use it in lots of different ways. Try things out. Enjoy the nuances, the fun novelties, the wondrous relics. Marvel at the discoveries. Learn from your errors. Feel proud of your acquisitions. It all pays off in the end. Take my word for it.