Wednesday, July 27, 2011

There are no words

Sometimes, I'm at a loss for words.

At times it's because I'm so overwhelmed by emotion that the power of speech is short-circuited.  Those are the times of heights of joy or of grief, of wonder or of shock.  Words are impossible.

There are occasions when I disappear and am swallowed up in something far greater than I could ever dream of being or witnessing.  Words are superfluous.  In the face of the grandeur of creation, in the atmosphere of pure worship of the Creator - I've been known to be struck dumb.  No words could make it any better than what it already is.

And other times, it's like I've said all I can say to a person (either someone who is hurting or someone who's hurting me) and there's nothing more to say.  I know that there is probably something I SHOULD say but for the life of me I cannot think of a thing.

Sometimes I struggle with feelings of unearned guilt at being silent in that last situation.  It's not that I am uncomfortable with the absence of noise, it's just that I have a hard time not jumping in and either defending myself or trying to give advice.  Yet I know that people have the right to be who they are, to do what they choose to do, and to bear the consequences of their own decisions.  So the best choice for me is to stay silent.  There are no words that could make it better.  A hug, yes.  And in some cases, walking away is the best response.  But words?  sometimes they just get in the way.

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