Wednesday, August 20, 2014

Fill in the Blank by Diana Flegal

If you question the value and longevity of our words, see if you have any trouble filling in the blank on a few of these.

Hickory, dickory, dock/ the mouse ___  __ ___ _____.
                                                                  1901 Mother Goose rhyme

Or...
                          I think that I should never see
                                                    a poem as ____  __  __   ____.
                         A tree whose hungry mouth is pressed
                                                 against the sweet earth's flowing breast.

My Dad could still recite this poem by Joyce Kilmer in it's entirety until his death at age 84. And because of that I can- almost.

 The Lord is my ________, I shall _____ _____. He leadeth me _____ _____ ______/ He restoreth ____ ____. Yeah though I walk through the ______ __ _____, I will fear no evil/ for though are _____ _____.                                                                         

How many times have the words of David's 23rd Psalm comforted you while laying in the dark? 

or...

Knock Knock!
                           _______ _____?
                                                     Old Lady.
                                                                     Old Lady, who?
                                                                                            I didn't know that you could yodel!

Knock Knock!
                           _______  _______?
                                                      Police!
                                                                        Police who?
                                                                            Police stop telling these knock knock jokes!

Alright, so some words we wish we could forget. But as writers, we all need to think about the possibility of our words lasting a very long time. Especially now with digital magazines and books. What might have been tossed out to save space for the really valuable stuff, can now be placed in a virtual file.


Proverbs 25:11 tells us: Like apples of gold in settings of silver, Is a word spoken in right circumstances.

Philippians 1:9-11: And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ; having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

Things that are excellent.


Some of you might say; "Frankly darling, I don't give a __________ ", but you should. We need to. Like the words here: 

"O Captain! my Captain, our fearful trip is done / the ship has weather’d every rack, ___ _____ we sought is won."               

The words of Walt Whitman re-immortalized by Robin Williams in the movie Dead Poet's Society, and all over the world this past week after Robin's untimely and tragic death, remind us that our days are numbered.

Choose your words wisely, for one day you might have to _____   ______.

Tweetable:  If you question the value and longevity of our words, see if you can fill in the blank on a few of these.

14 comments:

Diane Huff Pitts said...

Goes well with Psalm 21 The Message. The power of words. Thanks!

Linda Glaz said...

Great post!

Caroline said...

Fun post. And incredibly true!

Marlene said...

Great post, Diana. Words are spirits we unleash into the atmosphere that definitely impact our lives. The Bible teaches us that if we are attentive and heed the lessons.

Davalyn Spencer said...

Fun, fun post. And thought provoking.

Diana Flegal said...

Thanks all, I figure it being 'over the hump' day, it helps us all to smile a bit. :-)

Diana Flegal said...

Marlene- well said. Our words really do set the atmosphere.

Connie Cameron said...

A great reminder when we are weary of writing and doubt if our words matter. Thanks, Diana!

Ryan Fraser said...

Diana, I enjoyed this post. What a great reminder regarding the importance and power of words. The pen is, indeed, mightier than the _____________.

Linda Wood Rondeau said...

Shared on fb, twitter, google plus, pinterest, and on my blog!

Jackie Layton said...

Great post Diana! So glad I stopped by today.

Sue Ciullo said...

Words surely do matter. What a fun way to remind us of that truth!

Unknown said...

Remarkable post. Completely original, a breath of fresh air! And oh the truth revealed so profoundly! This one I'm sharing!

Diana Flegal said...

Thank you Connie, Ryan, Linda, Jackie, Sue and Margie. It was a lot of fun to write. BTW: Good one Ryan. I had so many choices- but figured I'd leave some to your imaginations :-).