cathedral thinking
n.— «Rogers described how he has embraced something called “cathedral thinking” and he was calling on the valley to join him. I cringed at first mention of the term, worried that he was going to digress into some awkward religious metaphor. Instead, Rogers talked about a recent visit he’d made to Europe where he visited a number of the great cathedrals. It struck him that the person who often envisioned these great buildings didn’t live to see them built. Instead, they articulated a powerful vision that galvanized people to work on something that took generations to realize.» —“We need some old world thinking” by Chris O’Brien San Jose Mercury News (California) May 25, 2008. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Unwrap the name of a candy bar, and you just might find a story inside. For instance, one chewy treat found in many a checkout lane is named after a family’s beloved horse. And: 50 years ago in the United States, some Latino elementary...
Why is an exciting event called a barnburner? A real barn on fire can be a spectacular sight, with so many combustible materials inside. Metaphorically, then, a barnburner is a “humdinger” or a “doozy.” There’s also a...