#0 WORD SERIES -- INTRODUCTION

November 19, 2021  

I’m planning a short “Word Series” unless you write and say, “Please don’t.”

You know, Words; those specific sounds we humans make using morphemes that magically move meaning mustered up somewhere in our brains, into the world through a variety of factors but mostly through our mouths. 

Words work wonders, wreak havoc, wax, wane, get realigned, reassigned, are gotten rid of, or birthed by cultural change. We can swallow them, mark them, regret them, stand on them, speak them through our fingers, but what we frequently fail to do is hold on to one of them, examine, and think about it.

I did that recently with the word, “Hurt.” It’s a free morpheme (no, not the drug), this. There is nothing to remove from this word without doing harm. It can stand alone, unlike, say, “ing” or “un” little units of language (morphemes) that requires a linking of some sort to make them meaningful. 

If you pay attention when you repeat and repeat “Hurt,” you notice that the word hurls off the tongue in the beginning, the sound requires a firm push; then ends with a quick spurt of ticked air created by a tap of the teeth, causing an unavoidably swift ending. The word’s original meaning, “to strike” or “a blow” resembles the experience of pain which, whether emotional or physical, hits. Hard.

If all goes well, if today’s writing renders what seems a work worth reading, tomorrow I will post “HURT.” We will do with the word what our mothers told us to do with food – slow down, chew thoroughly. It’s good, and it’s good for you.”

Meanwhile, if you have a word suggestion, send it in an email or use the Comment Space at the bottom of this page.

Thanks!

Barb