I admit it; I can be a smartass. I didn’t plan on becoming one, it just happened. It’s like an internal force is guiding me to open my mouth right then and there, and there is nothing I can do about it.
I don’t have a filter between brain and mouth. I have a thought, and it’s on my tongue at the same time.
But, I am a funny smartass. I don’t open my mouth to hurt people. I don’t have to be rude to get my point across. My goal is to make people think, and it’s so much easier to think when you feel good.
Words and language are the ultimate weapons. The right words can unite us, while wrong words can tear us apart. Wars have been started over verbal threats and offenses; peace has been made with a handshake and a promise.
Being a smartass doesn’t mean I have to be cruel. I don’t have to belittle people to feel good about myself; I don’t have to offend people or call them names. I know how to use language the right way.
We think in pictures, and words create images in our minds based on our understanding and interpretation of their meaning. I see funny pictures, and I see lots of beauty. Using language is an art, using the right words at the right time is something we all can learn -should learn.
What we hear, what we read, how we speak and how we write -nothing shapes us and moves us more, nothing enriches us more. Thousands of years of speaking, loaded with errors and prejudices of our ancestors, inspired by their dreams, visions, and ideas. What a beautiful heritage it is!
The power of language is apparent. Some words are sacred; others carry our hopes and our fears, our wishes and prayers and our consolation.
The way we use language has changed during the last decade. Now we say what we think, and we don’t hold back, often while hiding behind a screen. It seems to be so much easier to say what we think if we don’t have to look into people’s eyes.
We type and text fast; we share everything in lightning speed online. Social media pages are often abused to bully people. Short and sharp twitter messages let us focus on the main message, and most of it is not good.
Personal insults are on the rise, even public figures have no problem to use foul language openly. Many of them don’t know it any better, others just follow blindly and walk down the wrong path without thinking.
Words, so many words misused, so much potential wasted. It saddens me.
It’s not just clothes that make the man!
The happy Quitter! 
Preach!! This is such a powerful post, the focus of which is one of my favorite topics – communication. While I was reading I couldn’t help but think about young people today and just how much the English language has changed. Writing in shorthand, with emoticons instead of words and being unaware of tone is so sad. Many schools no longer teach handwriting, welcome to the world of technology. We’ve lost our humanity and think because we are behind a screen it gives us license to say whatever, wherever and whenever we want regardless of how it makes the other person feel. Maybe I’m old because we were taught to put ourselves in the reader’s place when writing. But really even older people are rude nowadays. Manners seem to gone by the way of the dinosaur. This was a very enjoyable read.
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I am pleasantly surprised by the number of bloggers who agree with me. For a short while I thought it was just me, thought I was too oldfashioned.
Language and words are so beautiful when used right, I wish the younger generation could see it as well. I use texting as well, but I use it limited. I love to hear the giggle in someones voice, a LOL just doesn’t do it.
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I know what you mean. Poor things don’t even know how to write a cohesive letter.
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Bridget, it is all good true that some people seem to have lost the internal stop sign that keeps the sometimes hurtful words that a person is thinking from tumbling out their mouths. We need a kinder and gentler world.
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Yes, we do. We need to step back and remember the way most of us were raised. “Respect” has a lot to do with it.
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That is especially relevant this week, Bridget
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Yes, this week and in the coming weeks.
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All so true, Bridget!
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All so uncivilized- so awful. Words have such power- so important to use them wisely
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Agree – every word of it 😦
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A great post about the power of words, Bridget. It’s always a good idea to think about what we way, this time more than usual. 🙂
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love this… love the title – you got me with the title.
true true true… a true smart person is never rude for they know the art of diplomacy , grace and humility. They will even take the blame for what is not their fault….
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because harmony is worth more than being right.
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Yeah, I can be a smart ass as well. I try to be civil when it comes to actually having a serious conversation, even when the other person is calling me names. However, I don’t really get offended all that often. I just take it with a grain of salt and go about my day.
Good post!
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You made a good point. I think a serious conversation or discussion is only possible if people act civil. It’s a form of respecting the other person, even if you disagree with their opinion. Good to see you Godless Cranium 🙂
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I yearn for the day when there was at least a pretense for respectful disagreement and weary of all the character assassination so prevalent in our political landscape. I voted early and plan to bury my head in the sand until election night.
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I fear it’s not going to stop after the election. I fear it will get worse. Even some of the bloggers use a language that I don’t approve of.
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Well said. The sentiment is similar to what I wrote about social media earlier today; except you managed to do so without dropping any f-bombs 😉
I think this is what happens to people when they let their emotions get the better of them. I’m not sure if it really is happening a lot more often these days or if I’m just becoming more sensitive to it. What I do know is that I don’t like it one bit.
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I haven’t read your post -yet. I am going to do it later, after I closed this nuthouse for today. Can’t wait to read what you said.
I think we become more sensitive to it, because it happens too often now.
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In the last few months I’ve seen way, way too much abuse of words, or at least using words to hurt instead of heal.
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I guess we all have and it bothers me. What example do we set for the children watching us? It saddens me, it really does.
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