As I’m sitting down to write this first article, I am thinking to myself, “what do words even mean for me?”
I have an English Degree. That’s still a statement that sounds foreign to me, no matter how many years it’s been since College. I’m married to a fellow English Major, but we joke about how we have completely different educations. For one thing, he studies literature (Ok, but theory is way too stressful for me), and he is completing a Master’s Program.
Back to this words thing… I sold out to "The Man" right out of college. My whole goal throughout college was to get out, and fast. I just wanted to be a grown up, make real money, and start my life. Now I spend my days crafting the perfect passive aggressive email to the Insurance Agent on the other end of the inbox. Honestly, even making complete sentences is a lost art in the business world. I do promise not all my emails are passive aggressive, I actually make it a goal to come off as nice as possible most times.
The thing that really gets me about words and text is how different it is now with Social Media, News Casts, and advertising we read. Our world is made up of 140 characters or less, and we’re all just fighting to say our entire opinion within these limitations. I wouldn’t even call it a generational boundary, because this is happening across all lines. The short restrictions of social media, text messages, and even emails are causing more stir in society because we are only seeing these glimpses of what people have to say.
We are now spending our days interpreting text messages from friends and family, trying to decipher every word in an email, and definitely judging one another based on each tweet. It’s amazing to see how relationships are affected by this notion, and even more amazing to see how acquaintances hardly even thrive anymore, because we can’t respect one another through social media.
I don’t know why I ever stopped writing. I stopped journaling, I stopped blogging, I even stopped chiming in so much in social situations. I think I had lost the passion of needing to format words together to feel something. My hopes are that these articles will come with some insight, whether for you or for me, and that I can find the passion again. I want to be able to find the courage to pick up poetry again, maybe even share it with others. I want to express myself in a healthy way, and find the common respect from others in the safe place of more than 140 characters. Let’s create some text together. Happy reading friends, and cheers to you for getting through this journey with me.
