What does it mean to be "fascinating"?

 I probably should have put this post first, because the first thing you should do before embarking upon any kind of study, is define WHAT it is you are studying. Duh! You wouldn't commit to starting piano lessons if you didn't even know what a piano was, right? Or maybe you're adventurous like that, and you would sign up for something, or take a class in something without having the slightest clue what it was. 

But, to give things a little more perspective, I decided to define a few terms. This gives me a good visual of what it is I'm trying to become. The idea to do this was inspired during a conversation I was having with my husband this morning. He was confiding in me some realizations he had come to learn about himself. As I listened, I kept thinking, "How would a fascinating woman respond to this? How would she motivate and inspire him, and assure him of her love. What would she say to her husband that would captivate him and cause him to be in awe of her wit and wisdom?" 

I was sad to realize that even after what I have read so far, I didn't even have a visual in my head to pull on of really what it meant to be "fascinating". So, I put the dictionary to use and came up with this:

fascinating[ fas-uh-ney-ting ]

adjective

1. of great interest or attraction; enchanting; charming; captivating: a fascinating story; fascinating jewelry.

 fascinate [ fas-uh-neyt ]

verb (used with object)

1. to attract and hold attentively by a unique power, personal charm, unusual nature, or some other special quality; enthrall: a vivacity that fascinated the audience.

2. to arouse the interest or curiosity of; allure.

3. to transfix or deprive of the power of resistance, as through terror: The sight of the snake fascinated the rabbit.

 

So...to elaborate:

of [ uhv, ov, uh v, uh ]

preposition

2. (used to indicate derivation, origin, or source): a man of good family; the plays of Shakespeare; a piece of cake

interest [ in-ter-ist, -trist ]

noun

1. the feeling of a person whose attention, concern, or curiosity is particularly engaged by something: She has a great interest in the poetry of Donne.

2. something that concerns, involves, draws the attention of, or arouses the curiosity of a person: His interests are philosophy and chess.

3. power of exciting such concern, involvement, etc.; quality of being interesting: political issues of great interest.

attraction [ uh-trak-shuh n ]

noun

1. the act, power, or property of attracting.

2. attractive quality; magnetic charm; fascination; allurement; enticement: the subtle attraction of her strange personality.

3. a person or thing that draws, attracts, allures, or entices: The main attraction was the after-dinner speaker.

 

enchanting [ en-chan-ting, -chahn]

adjective

1. charming; captivating: an enchanting smile.

charming[ chahr-ming ]

adjective

1. pleasing; delightful: a charming child.

2. using charm; exercising magic power.

captivate[ kap-tuh-veyt ]

verb (used with object) -vat·ed, -vat·ing.

1. to attract and hold the attention or interest of, as by beauty or excellence; enchant: Her blue eyes and red hair captivated him.

2. to capture; subjugate.

WOW! There is so much in these definitions and it makes things so clear. I see what it is and who it is I want to be. I want to have a magnetic charm over my husband, and be pleasing and delightful for him to be around. Definitions of words give you the descriptive details you need to envision what it is you desire to become, and books, lessons, assignments and application give you the means to get there.