Word of the Day: Care
In a recent post on the word cure, I wrote about how cure is rooted in care. Attempts to cure disease and distress are acts of care towards someone in need.
I witness the phrase “I don’t care” used by others, sometimes passionately and sometimes nonchalantly. I have observed myself using this phrase in conversation or thought as well. I usually pause when hearing this. I stop to investigate.
Surely I do care - in the sense that I wish for the health, safety, and happiness of all. In my own usage, the phrase “I don’t care” often means something close to “I don’t feel attached to an outcome.”
Let’s dive deeper into the true meaning of the word care for insight.
care noun :
the provision of what is necessary for the health, welfare, maintenance, and protection of someone or something.
serious attention or consideration applied to doing something correctly or to avoid damage or risk.
care (verb) :
feel concern or interest; attach importance to something.
look after and provide for the needs of.
Care stems from Old English caru or cearu meaning “sorrow, anxiety, grief” and “burdens of mind.” These words evolved to also mean “concern, anxiety caused by apprehension of evil or the weight of many burdens.”
Other early words related to care include:
Proto-Germanic *karō “lament, grief, care”
Old Saxon kara “sorrow”
Old High German chara “wail, lament”
PIE root *gar “cry out, call, scream”
The word evolved from the root “cry out” to mean “lament” or “scream” especially as it relates to grief and anxiety. It wasn’t until around 1400 that we see the meanings related to attention and protection show up. More modern definitions of care emerged almost as a mirror of the original meaning — an opposite of grief or a way to assist someone who is in deep grief and anxiety.
Prior to researching the word care, I had not considered that it is rooted in grief. Other words we see in definitions of the early root words are: sorrow, lament, wail, cry out, call, scream. These are primal, visceral, and emotional words.
As I mentioned earlier, I have observed myself and others using the phrase “I don’t care” to mean “I don’t feel concerned or attached to an outcome.” In context to the association with grief, when I find myself saying “I don’t care” what I really mean is that I don’t feel the intense emotion of grief or a desire to scream out. I do still wish for all beings to have their needs provided for.
I have heard and do believe that grief is rooted in love. Grief is complex - often involving anger, sadness, anxiety - but it is almost always experienced in connection with the loss of something we really love. Love comes in many forms and is not always experienced in context to relationships. We can love an idea, a version of ourselves, a place, etc and grieve when these transform. Grief can be a testament to our capacity to love.
Care, which in it’s original sense meant to cry out, is also related to love.
Care in it’s modern sense is a reaction to the earliest sense of the word. Care is based on our collective desire to alleviate the suffering of those around us. It is a reaction to witnessing grief, sorrow, and anxiety paired with an intention to help others who are in that state. Care is compassionate.
