speech
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Preachers and Poets
I know a womanwho writes beautiful words,words of healing and encouragement.Her meditations inspire.Her reflections open closed hearts. But in daily life,she speaks with harshness and cruelty,slashing and burning.She spews verbal napalmthat strips the foliagefrom human hearts. This is a dangerfor… Continue reading
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A Warning about Words
The danger in preaching(so we've been told)is the failure to practice. The danger in writingis the failureto follow the vision we espouse. The danger in everyday speechis the risk of stumbling from the conversationin the opposite direction of our assertions. The… Continue reading
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Tight
I throw you a word:tight. How do you respond? Positively? "She and I are tight." "You in those tight jeans–perfect." Negatively? "He's a tightwad." "Why are you so uptight?" It's just one word,yet packed with possible… Continue reading
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The Role of Words
If what you seek is truth,give up on words. All writing–all speech–is fiction,a combination of symbols arranged in arbitrary order,pointing (depending on the speaker and receiver)in any of several dozen directions. Your words are a bucket of ping-pong ballssealed in… Continue reading