I wanted to post this on my spiritual insight blog...but unfortunately I can't figure out how to access it...any ideas?
The Power of Words
I love the feel of words. Yes, the feel. Words written on the virgin paper add texture. They bring texture to an otherwise blank life.
The world was created with words. Words bring the void into Being. So too, I can transform my inner void into a life of purpose and light. Words illuminate, they give direction. Words create a pathway to a new and better world.
Helen Keller is the perfect example of the value of words, for until she learned to make and use words, she was just a small feral body, wild and often destructive. But when her teacher came and taught her words, her world opened up. Words brought order and purpose to her life, to her soul. Words brought light into her darkness. Words were her door to a meaningful life. She was no different, in that respect, than any of us.
Having a body, having the ability to breath and move, does not give us life. True life is meant to be more than just physical, it is meant to be rich. Life is truly a spiritual voyage. Words are spiritual. I can feel them in my soul. Therefore, the words I use bring vibrant experiences into my Being, and are therefore precious. I must choose my words with utmost care.
I create my own world by the words that I choose. The words I choose to read, the words I choose to speak, and the words I choose to write. I am creating my life with my words.
What words do you use that create or destroy your life? Do you say, "You make me so angry"? When you actually mean, "I let my emotions be controlled by your actions." Do we use the proper labels (words) in each situation? Our labels can be damaging or uplifting.
Here is my promise to myself: I will use only those words that are uplifting to me and to others. I will speak the truth with love at all times. I will create a world of beauty with my words. My words are my tools. With my words I will create the world in which I wish to live.
Let me share two examples from my own experience:
I once said to a small child, "When you were a baby, you were so cute, you looked like a monkey". I was thinking that this was a compliment. In time that same, very adorable and beautiful child made a comment to me. She stated, “I am not pretty, I look like a monkey”. I was shocked to hear my own words repeated back to me some years later, in a very self-depreciating way. She had heard my words. And because of my careless words, she now carried a distorted picture of herself. I contributed to her false self-image. My heart breaks to remember my poorly chosen words.
On a more positive note, I once said to a young mother that I knew that she was a great mother and that she would take excellent care of her little boy of three. In my heart I was determined to be supportive, while fearing that I would actually need to zoom in and remove him from her care at some point. She was husbandless, jobless, and homeless with a history of making poor choices. I saw her potential and I clung with words to my belief in her abilities. This wonderful (but at the time, still immature) woman not only lived up to my words of expectation, she has surpassed them. It is now a decade later and she is not only an amazing mother of a bright & happy fourteen year old, but has a responsible job and has recently bought her own home and a brand new car. She is competent and confident. True she did these things herself, but I do believe that my words were spoken at a time that she needed them. I shudder to think what may have resulted had I used negative words such as, “you can't make it on your own”, or “you'll ruin his life”!
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