Hitching my wagon

This morning my I-Ching Hexagram told me I need to 'hitch my wagon to the sun'. I was pretty sure that was not the way I learned that particular quip, I thought it was 'hitch your wagon to a star'. Somehow, hitching my wagon to the sun seems hot, sweaty, uncomfortable, agonizingly horrible. Hitching it to a star, however, seems full of promise and I feel like I can accomplish just about anything.

 

Frankie enters stage left.

 

Frankie: "No, no, no. I hate when you get that look on your face."

Me: "What look?"

Frankie: "The one on your face right now. Determination. Grit. Resolve. Something is on your mind."

Me: (Trying to pretend I don't know what she's talking about). "I've no idea what you're getting at."

Frankie: "You know exactly what I'm 'getting at'." She picks up one of the many books surrounding me at the moment. You're doing research."

 

Frankie says this with such disgust; you would think I was carrying the Plague. She shudders and slams down the book.

 

Me: "Go away!"

Frankie: "Fine! I guess this means there's no hot breakfast this morning." She walks off in a huff.

 

I turn back to my computer and type in hitch your wagon to a star.

 

I love the way, and how quickly a long string of web-sites appears on my screen all eager to teach. What I want to know is where did this phrase come from?

 

Come on Internet...do your thing.

 

I'm not disappointed.

 

It turns out, this particular phrase is attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson, and is taken out of context, (although at some point in his lifetime he may well have spoken these words), they originally appeared as follows in the Atlantic Monthly, from a column called American Civilization, in 1862.

 

"I admire still more than the saw-mill the skill which, on the sea-shore, makes the tides drive the wheels and grind corn, and which thus embraces the assistance of the moon, like a hired band, to grind, and wind, and pump, and saw, and split stone, and roll iron. Now that is the wisdom of a man, in every instance of his labor, to hitch his wagon to a star, and see his chore done by the gods themselves. That is the way we are strong, by borrowing the might of the elements. The forces of steam, gravity, galvanism, light, magnets, wind, fire, serve us day by day, and cost us nothing."

 

However, by 1870, hitching one's wagon to a star had started to become a catch phrase. I'm glad, I like it, I kind of wish my I-Ching would have said that rather than the 'sun', but I guess I should look on it as though I-Ching has higher expectations from me.

 

Research always delights and surprises me. I never know what I'm going to find. Today is no exception. While I was nosing through websites I came across one that had a forum page. On a Forum Page, someone asks a question, and members of it can respond with answers, generally you will get some good, serious responses, and often great debates. However, once in a while someone will give a wonderful and clever response. Such as this: Posted on The Free Dictionary, by Farlex, forum page, in 2011. It was posted by somebody with the screen name Thar, from Iceland.

 

"OK, this star you are hitching to:

1- is a ball of gas, so there is nothing to hitch to

2- has probably disappeared by the time the light gets here

3- is at several thousand degrees, and apt to scorch the harness

4- the atmosphere is electric but it is a bit warm and airless, sort of muggy.

5- hey, this is someone’s Sun. Have you asked permission? Star-stealer's get strung up!"

 

Oooooohhhhhh, aaaaaahhhhhhhh, getting arrested for star-stealing. I like it!