There’s something carnally passionate about words. The ability to form meaning from pitches riding waves across the immiscible solution that is what we breathe is awesome- meaning by definition, that it inspires awe. At least in me, but I’m a word nerd who likes to rhyme. If you think about words as sound, we are what we say, and with every word we speak, we are breathing our communication. It’s astounding that so many passionate emotions can be expressed by simply combining letters, and then combining the aforementioned combined letters, until you have a bunch of letters all smooshed together that creates meaning within your brain. From the time we are born, we begin to learn their power. A milestone charted by parents everywhere is a baby’s first word, and once we begin to imitate the sounds that we hear made, we begin to find independence in the world. A baby is able to develop cell by cell, and word by word.

I personally believe that words can be more powerful than the sword, and more protective than a shield. I still promote the use of swords in some situations however, because come on, swords are cool. But because of the power that words hold- just like swords- you have to learn how to use them wisely, and wield them with maturity. Throughout history, words have been the weapon of choice for some of the most powerful people to stand on a national or world stage. From Winston Churchill-possibly the greatest orator in our century- to his contemporary, Adolf Hitler, also one of the most influential orators, words can build a foundation for a nation to stand on, and turn souls to ash. And this is exactly what is seen in day to day life in school halls, the television screen, and the streets we share with our neighbors.

I have personally experienced the stinging pain of words, and the immense power that builds you up when they are spoken in strength and affirmation. I know that all people cannot be changed. That all conflicts won’t be resolved while we are on this planet. That people will be bullied, degraded, and subjugated through words. But that does not mean we should stop asking the question why. Why is it like this? What are the possible solutions? And while these are simply rhetorical questions for the purpose of this writing, they ring true. I believe that we can solve the problem of deceitful words, with words spoken in truth. When I was gunned down by words fired from tongues with the purpose of harming me, I at first fell under their blow. It took me a long time to stand up again, but when I did, I swore to never use words to harm another person. And I believe as one person takes up that vow, and another person, and another, the strength of the words spoken in kindness and love, can begin to vanquish some of the damage left by the cruelty of people’s actions. This is not the entire solution, and I don’t know what is. But it is a piece of the puzzle. The more we find the broken ends of the world, and put them back together, the more we begin to see the full picture of why we are the way we are. We just need to look for what connects, so we can begin to fill in the cracks left on the edges of society.