A certain blond once graced my classroom as a student. "Caitlin," I said to her, "Would you name the national anthem of America? If you need a hint, just ask." "Can you give me the hint?" she replied (they always do). "Well," I said, "The national anthem of Canada is 'O Canada.'" Caitlin ventured, "So the answer is 'O America'?" "Good, good," I remarked, "But what does the 'O' mean? It's not spelled 'O-h' but simply 'O.' "I don't know," she said. "It's simple," I explained, "The 'O' is an old-English corruption of the word 'More.' So the real name of our national anthem is 'More America.' Nice name, isn't it?" "I guess so," she answered. "O dear," I thought to myself. Then I led the class in singing a stumbling rendition of "More America."
-Old Gargoyle
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