When I was growing up the alphabet signs in school read B is for boat. How spectacular that these mid twentieth century school signs chose other words. Words like become, beautiful, best and bright. Words that encouraged children to ‘believe’ in themselves and their own ability to ‘become’ and make the world a ‘better’ place.
We forget the power of words. The way they can guide and inform us, lift us up or tear us down. Calling a child fat, or ugly, stupid or lazy plants seeds that may grow into weeds that haunt them like kudzu in their minds the rest of their days. Words become the tapes we play as teens, adults and well into our later years. The words spoken to us by teachers, parents, family, siblings, and friends can create a path that takes years to unwind.
I have a friend who was the ‘fat’ one in her family. She mother always commented about how much prettier she would be if she would lose a few pounds. When she called home from college the first thing her mother asked her was how much she weighed. When her mom sent care packages they were filled with clothes that were two sizes smaller than my friend could wear. She sent them as “incentive” for the daughter to lose weight. Needless to say my college buddy struggled with her weight and self image all her life. She never thought she was pretty enough, skinny enough, or worth being loved. Just one example of how words shaped a life to the point of emotional ruin.
So what words are you putting out there? What words are you planting in the brains of those around you? Are they words like believe and beautiful, like best and better? Or are they other ‘B’ words that rhyme with witch and scotch? Every time you describe someone or something about that person think of your words as seeds. Are the words you speak the seeds you want planted in that person’s head for the rest of their days? If not, choose better words!
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