Incredible

Incredible I love that word. It means something that is so out of the ordinary, that it cannot be believed, in fact, it is beyond credit, beyond credence. The meaning of the word, etymology is as follows:

incredible
early 15c., from L. incredibilis "that
cannot be believed," from in- "not" + credibilis "worthy of belief”

I first understood the magnitude, the enormity of this word when I was reading a book given by my father, “Word Power Made Easy” by Norman Lewis. It’s a particularly fascinating book as it gives the etymological (roots, origins, history of words, where they came from) references and discusses them as they are used today. For example, another word (and another of my favorites in the etymological area) is Disaster.

disaster

has its roots from Italian disastro "ill-starred," from dis- "away,
without" + astro "star, planet," from L. astrum, from Greek. Astron.

The word is derived and emphasized heavily in an astrological sense, of a calamity blamed on an unfavorable position of a planet. The word conveyed the idea that a catastrophe could be traced to the "evil influence of a star or planet".

We certainly do not mean to blame our stars these days, when we say disaster, but that’s where it was birthed from.

Anyway, without further digression from ‘Incredible’. We sure tend to use it in a very nondescript manner, using it as an objective for things like a great chocolate cake, or a match won. And we use it with great elan, as if we know exactly what we are talking about.

But recently I really, really did understand what actually feels to be in an incredible moment. My friend, post our lunch together, decided to show me something. A pic of someone. Who? Well, that was my question to him. After a bit of “ahem” and “uh”s he said, it was the photograph of the person (and he said person and not girl/ woman/ female), the person he was going to marry.

And he didn’t mean it in the “soulmate”, “the one” – for whom he had been waiting his entire life, person he was going to marry kinda way. Rather it was an awkward, she isn’t my girlfriend (its an arranged marriage), she isn’t my fiancée (the ‘ring ceremony’ or sagai is in March), she is the person my parents chose for me and whom I will marry way. I guess that’s why it took him a couple of breaths of uhs and ahems to spit it out, probably was doing this math in his pretty little big head.

Even after seeing the photo I was in a state of disbelief. Yes, here is where the incredibility comes in.

I will confess, I was a bit disappointed that the photo wasn’t mine and that this wasn’t one of the great romantic movie scenes where the hero confesses his love for the heroine in a corky yet loveable way. Because the “person I am going to marry” did seem to trigger off that kind of a feeling of a great drum roll sequence coming up where the officer and the gentleman would come in and carry me off to the sunset. I am not particularly fond of him in that manner, but the dialogue deserved a better ending. Sigh!

Anyway, even after the photograph confirmed it wasn’t me, and even after 10 minutes of straight shooting of question of who, how and where, I still couldn’t believe he was getting married! After office, I even messaged him, asking him to confirm the same, to which he didn’t reply. I am not surprised, my messages do tend to catch him in the worst of moments. Like when I messaged, “hey you didn’t take my call, I guess you must be driving the new car back home :D” only to discover the next morning that he didn’t get the car loan and the car purchasing and brining home bit never materialized. It was like a hit below the belt, that message. But hey! I didn’t know.

Anyway, it took me a good nights sleep to finally digest the fact, that yes everything was happening very fast and yes it is INCREDIBLY INCREDIBLE, but he is getting married. And soon!

I wonder how he is coping with this situation, for I am complete freaking out. Well one of us should. And by us I mean me, the groom and the bride, and the brides’ counterpart for me.
Sigh, anywho.. incredible. It is.

And that’s how, Meghna Singh really understood what Incredible means. Now only if I get to truly understand what disaster means. Hey, maybe my wedding will help me do that. :D