| | My ‘Why’ Behind the Words | |

I love words.

I really, really love words.

And quite frankly, I believe, when handled wisely, words can change the world.

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Since I was a kid, I’ve been hopelessly infatuated with the English language.

Words are compelling to me, and the Thesaurus (aka thesaurus.com) has long been a close companion of mine.

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I’m of the opinion that every sentence can be likened to a puzzle, as the writer manipulates various words, phrases, and expressions to create a masterpiece of literary brilliance. A good sentence will flow rhythmically when spoken and harmonize beautifully when written.

It’s quite wonderful, really. And as I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized just how grateful I am to live in a world with words.

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Now, I’m not much of a public speaker.

I’m shy, so standing in front of a large group of people to openly share my heart is not a comforting thought to me. In fact, it’s quite disheartening, actually. I’m getting anxiety just thinking about it . . .

But because my mind runs in 20 different directions each minute, I find that I really do have a lot to say . . . just no courage to say it. It’s quite the frustrating paradox, you know.

For me, writing is an opportunity to share my heart openly, vulnerably, and authentically without the fear of stuttering, stammering, and the good old-fashioned “shaky voice syndrome.”

(Oh, and the fact that I don’t have the glaring eyes of my audience staring back at me definitely helps, too.)

Writing has always been a form of emotional catharsis for me—a way to release bottled up thoughts, feelings, and opinions. Three years ago today, I decided to share some of that writing, though occasionally scattered and unbearably wordy, with you . . . here.

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So what’s the “why” behind the words, you ask?

Ultimately, I believe that, while social media can effectuate quite a bit of harm, it can cultivate quite a bit of good, too. That’s why I’m here. That’s why I write.

Because the world is a dark, dark place, and I’m called to be a light.

Think of a hammer, for instance. A hammer by itself is not inherently evil or inherently good. It’s just . . . well . . . a hammer. When a man takes the hammer into his possession, however, the power of that hammer now rests upon the man to harness it for good or for evil. When you think about it, social media is quite similar. It can be used to damage, discredit, deflate, and destroy; but, it can also be used to brighten, encourage, educate, and inspire.

It’s all in how you harness the power.

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I have a tendency to ramble when I write about something I’m passionate about, and in case you couldn’t tell already, I’m unbearably passionate about this—-about words, about writing, and about harnessing the power of media to positively influence the world.

But because I’ve already rambled on long enough, I’ll close with this:

You don’t have to be a writer to make a difference. You don’t have to be a speaker to make a change.

You just need to find the thing God created you to do, and do it. And for me, writing has always been that “thing.”

My writing’s not perfect. I’m perpetually wordy and sometimes redundant,  but I’m passionate about it, so I keep at it.

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You’ll never know how much it means to me that you read my words. I know my posts can be long, and I know that your day can get busy; but, it truly does encourage me beyond what you may realize that you still take the time to read my (occasionally scattered) thoughts, regardless.

And in as much sincerity as can be achieved virtually,  I just wanted to say thank you.

Thank you so very much.

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And that’s the “why” behind my words.