Offer

What do you do with the things you own? Is the thing itself more important, or the people you meet thanks to it? These are strong questions for a very, very common word. It originates from spoken Latin and not from the language of the literati, and then takes on a history that makes it noble, liturgical, widespread. Its meaning consists in the idea of carrying something, and doing it for a reason. It captures at the center one of the fundamental needs of the human being: meeting, establishing bonds that have the strength to be lasting. It is no coincidence that offering quickly became a word of religion. As a boy I was passionate about classical mythology and I was struck by the fact that heroes always had an object with them to offer, on occasion, to a person they had just met or to old friends. So, the value of the things you own lies in the fact that you can use them to establish and strengthen relationships. Furthermore, the meaning of offering is also to bring not something, but someone. Someone who is perhaps myself, therefore synonymous with introducing myself. After all, offering an offer does not consist of paying a tribute or proposing an exchange, but having the courage to approach, even empty-handed.


Fabio Arduini
NP October 2023