In 1675, just nine years after the terrible London fire had destroyed much of the city, Sir Christopher Wren, the famous architect, laid the cornerstone of what would be his most ambitious undertaking: St. Paul’s Cathedral. If you have visited London, you may have seen that incredible place. Wren worked on it for more than 35 years. Can you imagine working on one project for almost four decades — say, since 1972? Christopher Wren poured more genius into that cathedral than anything else he had ever done. It was his magnum opus, the capstone of his career.

When the building was finally finished, and Christopher Wren was a very old man, he personally conducted a tour for Queen Anne, the reigning monarch of . He showed her through the whole building, pointing out every architectural marvel. When the tour was over, he waited with bated breath for her reaction. In typical British terseness, she used just three adjectives to sum up her feelings: “It is awful, it is artificial, it is amusing.” Can you imagine Wren’s response, when the only three words the queen used to describe his most important work were “awful,” “artificial” and “amusing”? How disappointing!

But that’s not what happened. Instead, Wren breathed a sigh of relief, sank to his knees, and thanked the queen profusely for her graciousness. How could such a response been possible? The important fact is that words change — they don’t sit still. Back in 1710, the word “awful” meant “awe-inspiring.” The word “artificial” meant “artistic.” And the word “amusing” meant “amazing.” 

Another word with an interesting history is the term “amateur.” The dictionary tells us that the root of the word is the Latin amo, which means “love.” While we think of an amateur as someone who does something poorly, the word originally referred to someone who does something out of love! They may not be professionals — that is, no one pays them to do what they do. But sheer love is both their motivation and their reward.

I love that sense of the word. People are indeed blessed when life is not lived out of drudgery and duty, but passion and joy.

The oft-quoted Winston Churchill puts it this way:

 

Broadly speaking, human beings may be divided into three classes: Those who are toiled to death, those who are worried to death, and those who are bored to death. … Rational, industrious, useful human beings are divided into two classes: first, those whose work is work [only] and whose pleasure is pleasure; and secondly, those whose work and pleasure are one. Of these the former are the majority. … But Fortune’s favoured children belong to the second class. Their life is a natural harmony. … Each day is a holiday.    

 

            As you face this day and its challenges, how would its hours be different if every action, every decision were motivated by the sheer love of it? How would our relationships be transformed, if they were fueled by love? Try being an amateur; love can make today a holiday!