As I sat relaxing on the patio after cutting the lawn, a large bumble-bee flew into view. Busy searching for just the right flower it travelled just a few centimetres above the grass and, every once in a while, over the patio stones. Now, I admit that I’m not a big sweeper of grass cuttings after performing my mowing duties, which means there were dead grass cuttings everywhere. What surprised me was that the bee actually moved the assorted dead greenery on the patio below. It was, to me, a pretty amazing feat. Sure, grass isn’t that heavy, but a bee, even a big one, isn’t that much bigger. To see its wings create so much ‘wind’ that my grass cuttings were blown about a bit was simply fascinating.
We often associate power with large things. Earth-movers are powerful and can tear up great chunks of land with one mighty sweep of their bucket. Jumbo jets are powerful enough to knock over a school bus inadvertently parked in their jet-wash. C-4 is a powerful explosive that is often used to level old useless buildings instantly into a pile of rubble. Each of these items carries with it the weight of a well-earned reputation for making things happen around them. Their impact is felt immediately and unforgettably. Yet even a bumble bee, as small and relatively powerless as it might seem, has the power to change its environment. They might have been only dead bits of grass, but when I watched my neighbourhood bee fly over them, they were moved noticeably and definitely.
Words are wee, tiny things on a page. They can be whispered quietly or even mouthed silently with little effort and yet they can impact their surroundings noticeably and definitely. The tongue, we are told in the Bible, is like a rudder that steers a mighty ship. The words it shapes can harm as easily as they can heal. They can teach or confound. They can please or they can disappoint with equal aplomb. Our tongues, our speech, our ability to utter words is something that only takes a little bit of breath but can have a tremendous impact on those within our immediate environment.
My friend, the bee, had little concern for the way it tossed about the grass beneath it; I’m not even sure it could perceive the moving bits of greenery in its wing-wash. There are times when we too are unaware of the impact of our words; only when it is too late do we learn that an inadvertent phrase cut someone deeply; only after the fact do we realize that a word tossed out in jest was actually just the word needed to lift someone from despair.
We cannot always control where our words land; my own words have been at times been overheard by those around me and managed to create both positive and negative results. I cannot help it when that happens. Yet I can ensure that those who are in the direct path of my words are never hurt. We are all in control of our conversations with others. Sometimes we might have difficult lessons to share. Sometimes we must ask for change that is not easy. But always, no matter what we say, we must realize that our words will have an impact on those around us, and as much as we can, we should try to leave love, joy and peace in the wake of our words.
We often associate power with large things. Earth-movers are powerful and can tear up great chunks of land with one mighty sweep of their bucket. Jumbo jets are powerful enough to knock over a school bus inadvertently parked in their jet-wash. C-4 is a powerful explosive that is often used to level old useless buildings instantly into a pile of rubble. Each of these items carries with it the weight of a well-earned reputation for making things happen around them. Their impact is felt immediately and unforgettably. Yet even a bumble bee, as small and relatively powerless as it might seem, has the power to change its environment. They might have been only dead bits of grass, but when I watched my neighbourhood bee fly over them, they were moved noticeably and definitely.
Words are wee, tiny things on a page. They can be whispered quietly or even mouthed silently with little effort and yet they can impact their surroundings noticeably and definitely. The tongue, we are told in the Bible, is like a rudder that steers a mighty ship. The words it shapes can harm as easily as they can heal. They can teach or confound. They can please or they can disappoint with equal aplomb. Our tongues, our speech, our ability to utter words is something that only takes a little bit of breath but can have a tremendous impact on those within our immediate environment.
My friend, the bee, had little concern for the way it tossed about the grass beneath it; I’m not even sure it could perceive the moving bits of greenery in its wing-wash. There are times when we too are unaware of the impact of our words; only when it is too late do we learn that an inadvertent phrase cut someone deeply; only after the fact do we realize that a word tossed out in jest was actually just the word needed to lift someone from despair.
We cannot always control where our words land; my own words have been at times been overheard by those around me and managed to create both positive and negative results. I cannot help it when that happens. Yet I can ensure that those who are in the direct path of my words are never hurt. We are all in control of our conversations with others. Sometimes we might have difficult lessons to share. Sometimes we must ask for change that is not easy. But always, no matter what we say, we must realize that our words will have an impact on those around us, and as much as we can, we should try to leave love, joy and peace in the wake of our words.
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