Hello readers!
I am back from China and this week’s blog topic was inspired
while I was in the lovely city of Shangyu, China. One night I was walking
around the city with a few mates and for some unknown reason something my high
school English teacher had once said sprung to mind. I had asked him why he
felt the need to teach. I can’t remember his words exactly, but his response
articulated a desire to be the key that could unlock a student’s imagination.
At the time I thought I understood the gravity of his seemingly simple
statement, but his direct words suddenly seemed more significant and complex. I
was soon sent on an analytical tailspin. While thinking about my future
desires, teaching, self-development, a student’s potential, I abruptly took
pause. Why had this teacher’s statement resurfaced in my memory out of nowhere?
Truth be told, at the time the it was said, I thought his statement was pretty
banal. It all seemed so mysterious. This
brings me to what I suppose you could call my point; the power of dormant
language.
There are so many
statements we communicate and receive that we feel may be lost completely,
misunderstood, or superficially understood and then easily dismissed. I’d argue
that once our words are uttered they no longer belong to us. They are molded in
another’s mind. They interact with memories, emotions, and a host of other unknown
factors that have the ability to shape the understanding of a statement. With
the lapse of time these factors change and sometimes, unforeseeably, these
dormant expressions or ideas reemerge. A meaning transforms, becomes bigger
than it once was, or takes a more complex shape. I don’t really have a message,
other than describing how fucking awesome
communication and ideas can be. I just thought I’d share some of my strange
musings about the power of words. I suppose I could say that it is important to
be selective with your words. Although, that wouldn’t feel very genuine, seeing
as I sometimes say a lot of stupid and insignificant shit. I guess I will
conclude with a quote. Thanks for your time and glad to be back.
“Language is a part of our organism and no less complicated than
it.”
-Ludwig
Wittgenstein
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