Thursday, June 25, 2015

Each Word Is a Poem

I love language and words. Each word has it's own story to tell from its sounds to its history. The sounds in a word convey the mood of the word. Think of the phrase "fight or flight." The i sound [ai] in both words moves from low to high in your mouth. It indicates action, which is exactly what fighting or fleeing is. It's also nice that the words rhyme.

The word bear tells its own story through its history. West Germanic tribes were afraid of bears, but wouldn't call them by their real name. Instead they called it 'the brown one,' now shortened to bear. Just this one word tells of fear, nomads, death and life.

Words have nuances of meaning that become new definitions. The word skip first meant to leap/jump/run, which it still retains, but added a new meaning of skipping class. The literal meaning of skip took on a figurative meaning of missing something because you jumped over it.

Each word has symbolism to it. Good is from Sanskrit gadhya of what one clings to. I want to cling to happy things, loving things, good things.

My name, Eileen, is from brilliance, like German hell (not inferno). I can be a light of knowledge and goodness.

So what word is a poem to you?

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