Corazón - Der. del lat. cor.
Diccionario de la Real Academia Española
If I Can Stop One Heart from Breaking
By Emily Dickinson
If I can stop one heart from breaking,
I shall not live in vain;
If I can ease one life the aching,
Or cool one pain,
Or help one fainting robin
Unto his nest again,
I shall not live in vain
Jewels
My Spanish dictionary traces the word corazón, heart to the Latin cor. Cor, of course derives from the Greek. One of the most inspiring statements in Latin, from the Roman Catholic Mass (but applies to anything) is sursum corda which can in singular can mean “lift up your heart” or in plural “lift up your hearts”.
My mother would often quote that to me particularly when I felt depressed. When she died I made sure that Sursum Corda was written into the tombstone in Mexico City.
This blog contains a scan of the most valuable family jewel in my possession. I believe that my Rosemary may have worn it once at a Vancouver function and many people were dazzled by it. It consists entirely of little diamonds encrusted onto platinum.
In Spanish there is a lovely word “corazonada” which is much lovelier that its equivalent in English – hunch.
When I was 8 my father had a plainclothes cop called Manrique. When he would come on his frequent visits I could spot the bulky shoulder holster behind his suit coat. One day he gave me a lovely book which I have treasured and kept since, Corazón by Edmundo de Amicis. I wrote about it here.
Some years ago, when I returned from a trip to Buenos Aires I found myself alone in a Toronto, hotel morning knowing I was having a heart attack. That led to me finding my present cardiologist, Victor F. Huckell. A few months before my Rosemary died on 9 December 2020 he called me. He told me, “I understand that you have an appointment to get a right knee replacement. I would advise you cancel it as you will need to take care of your ailing wife.” I took his advice, cancelled and coincidentally I have never had problems with my right knee again.
I have no idea why my scanner has given different colours to the little diamonds. The heart is scanned under my mother's red Mexican rebozo.
My mother would often tell me that pearls had to be used. They needed to be close to skin or they would lose their sheen. I believe that I just might start wearing some of our jewels that have pearls. Would that include the heart of diamonds? I believe, yes!
