The Power of Words

Listening to President Obama’s speech at the memorial for the victims of the shootings in Arizona, one thing he said really rang true to me.
“... It's important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we're talking with each other in a way that heals, not in a way that wounds.”
Although the President may have been addressing the political rhetoric that has surrounded these tragic events, they also “speak” to the way we speak to others in everyday life.
I was born with a mildly deformed foot, and for many of my early years, I had to wear special shoes.
As a child, anything that made you “different” from other children would inevitably lead to name calling and, in my case, often times being left out of games or adventures, due to my big shoes and clumsy gait.
One day in particular from my childhood stands out to me even today, and it was the utterance of four words that completely changed my somewhat isolated outlook on life, at that point and time.
I was watching the local neighborhood kids playing bocce ball, a popular Italian ball game often referred to as lawn bowling. I had become accustomed to sitting on the sidelines, because there was less chance of being called names or picked on if I just sat quietly on my own and watched.
Our neighbor, Mrs. Cardinale, came out of her house on her way to the local market. She watched the kids playing on the lawn, and strolled over to where I was sitting and watching the fun.
She smiled at me, leaned down and said, “You can do that.” Just those four words, and then she walked on, towards the store.
If you are the kind of person who has always been encouraged by your family or your friends or somebody else, maybe you will never understand how happy those words made me feel. Four little words: “You can do that.”
I have never forgotten them. To this day, when things are not going so well, I think of those words and I lift up my chin and move forward.
I have a feeling many others have memories like that in their lives – small and sweet memories that are strong enough to override other memories of bitterness or sadness. Memories based on the simple act of using words of kindness, of encouragement and of support. There’s a lesson in that.
In our non-stop society, when off-handed cruelty at times seems to be the accepted norm, it may be worth giving a little thought to the idea that the small moments of people treating us with decency and empathy can last for a very long time – that the echoes of kindness can be as loud and enduring as the echoes of callousness.