A word is dead
When it is said,
Some say.
I say it just
Begins to live
That day.
By Emily Dickinson – Words are Dead
Creative Words
Words are so powerful, so transforming, so utterly creative, that putting pen to paper today feels somehow quite shocking. Where are the words going? What will they do? Who are they going to? It is all quite overwhelming when one stops to think about it, as words go on and on living in someone, somewhere, and with modern technology fly away fast, very fast.
I remember as a teenager my Mother advising me to be careful what I wrote in “love” letters as the words could never be taken back. Good advice but not always heeded, and anyway with snail mail one always had the opportunity to throw a letter away before the post box was reached. Years later she confessed to having read one of my letters from a boyfriend – perhaps she was looking for words that might have hurt me in some way. We cannot save our children from all hurt but we can teach them the creative power of words.
Invisible Words
Some words are invisible, these are the ones spoken to us by the natural world around us that tell of their importance and power, and show off their beauty, These invisible words create in us a sense of wellbeing and peace, so necessary in our fast-paced world, which is why the importance of parks in our cities cannot be overemphasised. Sitting on a park bench for half an hour eating lunch and looking (not thinking!) does more good than a bottle of vitamin pills – that’s what I think anyway.
Before leaving the subject of silent words, it seems also appropriate to mention our own silent words and what we create with them. If I am thinking and believing one thing and writing another there would be no truth in the writing, it would be a lie and useless. That is why it was such a privilege to be asked to write for Kinwomen as I know the team who write for you as I have watched some of them grow from teenagers into beautiful women; caring, tireless and true to themselves and therefore to you. Words will only work magic if they are true.
As woman we are most probably creating with words in one way or another most of the time, so let us create together a masterpiece of non-violence love and acceptance.
The words of women from every culture and every creed are needed for such a masterpiece, and it cannot be done in isolation.
Love Val