A thought by Nelson Searcy from his book, Tongue Pierced: How the Words You Speak Transform the Life You Live (p. 25). David C. Cook. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)
That is so true, isn’t it?
Nelson says, “As a kid, you probably chanted the phrase ‘Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.’ I know I did. With a little age and experience, we come to realize that even though it sounds good in theory, the phrase is just plain wrong. Words can hurt. I bet you don’t have any problem remembering the last harsh words that were spoken to you or the last encouraging words you received. Other people’s words can have an incredible impact on us, whether we want them to or not. They have the ability to create the atmosphere of our lives. They also have the ability to create the atmosphere for others.”
He goes, on, “Not long ago, while I was boarding a flight from Los Angeles to New York, I got an unwelcome reminder about the potential words have to create an air of negativity. I had just put my bag in the overhead compartment and was settling into the aisle seat I had booked weeks in advance when a burly guy walked up to me and huffed, ‘You’re in my seat!’ I pulled out my boarding pass and double-checked it. I was in the right seat—but that didn’t make any difference to him. This guy was adamant. Getting angrier by the minute, he used a few choice words to tell me how stupid I was for sitting in his seat and how I needed to move out of the way so he could sit down.
“About that time, a flight attendant realized what was going on and stepped in to settle things. She looked at our boarding passes, which, sure enough, both indicated the same seat number. But there was one major difference: my accuser’s ticket was for a flight to San Francisco, not to New York. He had boarded the wrong airplane. As you can imagine, he didn’t take the embarrassment well. Barreling back down the aisle toward the exit, he berated the attendants for allowing him to get on the wrong flight and spewed venom about how he would be filing a complaint with the airline’s management.”
Nelson then said, “As I sat back down, I began to notice how the energy around me had changed. One man’s thoughtless, angry words had dispersed a negative cloud over everyone in my section of the plane. The flight attendants were rattled, and my own blood pressure was skyrocketing. Mr. San Francisco had left me feeling disjointed and defensive. Because he had chosen to dole out massive negativity and criticism over what could have been a simple, easily addressed misunderstanding, he tore the entire atmosphere around him down, along with everyone within it. With his words, he shifted everyone’s reality.”
Have you ever done that? Or have you ever had someone do that to you? Our words and other people’s words can change the atmosphere all around us, can’t they? Let’s determine to make a positive difference in those around us. OK?
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