I love finding words I’m not familiar with. I won’t often use them in conversation after, because using obscure words can make you seem a prat.

But I still like learning them.

Today’s word of the day at Miriam Webster is:

Resile

Definition

: recoil, retract; especially : to return to a prior position

So, what does today’s word make me think about? It’s in the same family as resilient, meaning to bounce back in the face of damage or stress. But resile is more like jump back, or back down.

I resile from exercise because it makes my joints ache. I recoil from loud noise, from people who are too aggressive, and from the smell of hot dogs.

With age I’ve come to resile with regard to some of my opinions–as you do when you’ve got the benefit of hindsight instead of just knowing stuff. I retreat, regroup, expand, rethink. I give both more, and less, of the benefit of doubt. I am harder, and softer, in my retreat. I’m aware now of my shortcomings and how much more I need to grow to be a decent human, and I will not resile from that undertaking.

I resile from places beyond my front door, as it may mean human interaction. I retract into my shell after big gatherings so I can regroup. I am resilient but only to a point.