Words matter. Make yours something special.
I was reminded yesterday about the power of words. Meeting with a couple of people who have been helped by and seen the The Ladder UPP change lives, one of them recounted words from family members that had haunted her for years.
“Thunder Thighs. Fat. You’ll never amount to anything.”
They were spoken so often, they became her identify. Year after year, beaten down, they were a prophecy to be fulfilled.
Damn them.
I thought of the words I heard from my commanding officer when I was broken, “PTSD, are you kidding me. Shrink says you are going to kill yourself. I say BS! You’re just whining, a wimp! You are no Marine.” Of course, he used much more colorful language! 🙂
And I believed him. I thought I was pathetic and weak. As someone who had been taught that only the tough survive, I didn’t think I deserved to survive. So overwhelmed by the incredible emotion and physical pain I was suffering at the time, I put a gun to my head. This is the power of words.
Of course, words can have the opposite effect.
“I believe in you.”
“You aren’t a label. You are whatever you dream, what you hope for. You are what you do right now to live. You are the people you love, those that love you.”
“Hold me daddy.”
“I forgive you.”
“I love you, no matter what.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Let’s go for a walk in the woods.”
You get the point. Words matter. Just a few can destroy a life, just like a few can save a life.
Make your words matter in a good way. It doesn’t take much to be a light to those around us.
Please, take a moment today to tell someone you are sorry. Or to tell someone you love them. Or just say something nice to a stranger who looks like they need it. You might help change a life, or you might just make the world a better place. Either way, sometimes it only takes the right word. Understand the power of words and use them for good. You will help change people’s lives.
