Ever since I was a wee lad, fantasy fiction has been my passion. From the works of Tolkien to CS Lewis, to George RR Martin and even JK Rowling, I have always felt alive when reading. Today I wanted to share the magic of language with you. Aww, I am so romantic :). Come here, you.
Everything we set eyes on is bathed in language. From the moment you leave your door to the moment you close your eyes, you are bombarded with slogans, words in text, audio, street signs, sexy blogs, and conversations. While this seems obvious it's also quite concerning to think that it's unavoidable; that these words enter our brain like uninvited guests.
Haha, now, while we can't go around with headphones on, or blindfold ourselves, we also have to be mindful of the influence of this kind of magic. The magic of words. For on some deeper level they are more than you can possibly imagine.
It is amusing to know we learnt "spelling" back in school which sounds a lot like learning how to cast spells. Words in my opinion, are spells. I recall my sixth grade teacher telling us how words had so much power behind them. I think I finally realize what he meant. Despite the old rhyme "sticks and stones may break my bones but words can never hurt me", words in many ways are more powerful then sticks and stones, and they do hurt us.
Words resonate with our subconscious. Language are thoughts and ideas. If we say something to someone, whether they choose to accept it, a seed in their mind was planted. If a parent tells off a child for being too noisy, those words have a graver impact than the parent realized. This has been explored in what new age spiritual teachers have explained as the Law of Attraction. What we do inwardly effects outer reality. If I tell myself that "I am handsome" before I go into a venue and believe it to be true, I will be handsome. This is because you are the architects of your own reality. Whatever you say, goes.
Therefore we have to understand that language is a powerful tool. It serves multiple functions as to persuade, to entertain or even to inform. Yet the first one, to persuade, is language at its most dangerous. Corporations continually hijack language to use for their profit making schemes, changing beautiful words such as the concept of "love" into "I'm lovin' it" for McDonalds: essentially telling you to fall in love with the most disgusting saturated fatty food in the world. Language is being used everyday to "label" and to "designate" belief systems. If a rumour is spread about someone being "gay" we make all of these assumptions based around that word before even meeting that person. Words while useful, can also be used to generalize, to twist affairs and to defame. Beware of what you say.
Like money, resources and friends, language is external. We should always try to avoid externalizing our life. If we become dependent on external things to validate us, we become trapped. If we believe money is the key to happiness, we will be unhappy in the long run. If we reach for abundance we will never be abundant. The same applies to words. If compliments are the only things that will make us smile, we will never smile. If we become offended by someone calling us a name, we will be hanging onto that word forever. Yes, words are powerful, and so is money, but we are in this world to use them, and not to have them use us.
I then encourage you to create language as much as you can. Creativity is where we can use language as our own tool and do infinite good with it. We can inspire, entertain, compliment, and change the world for the better. Do not be afraid to create your own expressions. Our language has been described as a graveyard of dead metaphors and expressions. This doesn't have to be so. While I am not one of those purists that instigate that language should be kept proper and that modern "street" talk is bad, I am also aware that like fashion, language is an extension of who we are. What we are known as will define us, whether we like it or not. Embrace the good and the bad. Being faithful to one's self will make you immune to any words that come your way.
What is most important is how we define ourselves. What is the definition of you in the dictionary? . Like the magic of the books I read as I grew up, words can make us whoever we want to be. Understand that you are the writer of your own story, and that story is LIFE.
Until next time :)
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