Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones, But Words Will Never Hurt Me.
A childhood phrase that everyone knows.
Words.
If only words didn't hurt us. Unfortunately, we all know words can hurt us very deeply. Words can lift us up or beat us down. They can even kill.
As a writer, I know words evoke certain feelings and images depending on how they are written. The written word leaves feelings that stay with us long after the story has been read. We think about them, ponder for days on what they truly mean.
Words can be very powerful and inspiring. Or they can leave us with provoking mysteries that can only be reconciled within ourselves.
Yesterday, I attended a funeral for a great man who was killed as a result of words. The exact words that prompted his fine, learned young son to react uncharacteristically to words of another, we'll never know. But the resulting tragedy that occurred is felt by those who remain.
The power of Words. They can hurt us. May we use them well.
~Melissa
