Bon Mots

I used to think harbinger meant something that foretold an evil or devastating event. Maybe it’s because I generally heard it in the phrase “harbinger of doom”.  Or my all time favorite, “hard-hearted harbinger of haggis”, as said by Mike Myers as beat poet, Charlie, reciting his poem “Harriet” in the film “So I Married An Axe Murderer”. Then about two years ago, my daughter started writing for her school newspaper and then she became the blogs editor. That paper is called The Harbinger. The print and online versions are both nationally recognized and award winning.  I encourage you to take a look.  In any case, upon hearing the paper was called The Harbinger, I thought I might not really know quite what the word meant, so I looked it up. Its archaic use was a person sent ahead to provide lodging. And its modern meaning is one that foreshadows what is to come. Ah, now naming a newspaper that makes sense. Did you know what a harbinger was? Like me, did you think it foretold something dire? No, you all are ridiculously smart and probably knew the meaning from the start.