Finding the Possibilities of Our Words: Guest Post by Debbie Yost
Words open our life to a realm of possibilities.
Sometimes words come so easily to us that they can be taken for granted. Other times, words simply fail us. When this happens, we are forced to search for new possibilities to find our words and be heard.
My daughter is a constant reminder of not only how words can fail, but also how they present possibilities to learn and grow. My daughter has no words and her quest to find her words will not come easy. She will struggle and practice to train her mind and mouth to work together to form the words she longs to say. Until then, she finds other possibilities for her words.
For a writer, words can sometimes fail us as well.
We stare at a blank screen and will the words to come. The ideas are all jumbled up in our mind waiting to be organized. We struggle to form them into something intelligible that others will understand. It can be frustrating and at times we may wish to simply give up. To let the words drift away, never to be heard.
For my daughter, giving up is not an option.
She needs her words to be a part of this world. If she cannot find her words in the conventional way, she will need to find another way. She can use signs or pictures or an assistive communication device. She will not let her words fail. She will not let them die away. She will be heard.
Fear will not stand in her way.
Neither should a writer allow his words to fail. Whether our words are for a few or many, we must look to the possibilities. If we can’t find our way to the words one way, we need to look for another way. Perhaps the possibilities fall in taking a break and clearing our mind. Perhaps the possibilities can be found by jotting down a few key words until they can be formed together.
The possibilities are endless as long as we remain open to the challenge and do not let fear get in our way.
~~~
This is a guest post by long standing reader and contributor Debbie Yost.
Debbie Yost and her husband live in the Kansas City area and have three daughters, ranging from preschool to teenager. Debbie works part-time and spends the rest of her time volunteering at schools, chauffeuring children to flute practice and dance class and spending time with her family. Because Debbie’s youngest daughter has Down syndrome, Debbie has also become an advocate for people with Down syndrome to ensure they have the same opportunities to live a full and rewarding life as others.
Debbie writes about mothering, family life and Down syndrome awareness on her blog Three Weddings.
Previously from Debbie at Confident Writing… The Simple Power of Words
Photo Credit: Orchid Profusion by Amy Palko on Flickr
It’s a great and mind-provoking article, Debbie. As you’ve said so, “Giving up is not an option”. In my dictionary, there’s no word of “Giving up”, instead of “Carrying on” no matter how tough the situation is…
She needs her words to be a part of this world. If she cannot find her words in the conventional way, she will need to find another way. She can use signs or pictures or an assistive communication device. She will not let her words fail. She will not let them die away. She will be heard.
Beautifully said…something by which we should all live. Thank you for your insights.
.-= Barbara Ling, Virtual Coach´s last blog ..Income Fitness FINALLY….LIVE! And what incredible bonuses! =-.
Debbie, You’ve done a beautiful job of expressing the frustration that comes from not being able to express yourself. But patience wins out over frustration always – thank you for sharing your story. It is an inspiration.
.-= Brad Shorr´s last blog ..Drop Solution Selling from Your Marketing Vocabulary =-.
This is beautiful. I particularly love the the bit about your daughter’s words. All the best for you both, I hope she can always find her voice. You have inspired me to seek out mine.
.-= Smoph´s last blog ..Discovering Dali =-.
I love that your daughter won’t give up. She sounds wise beyond her years. Kids (grown ups, too, but kids struggle more) need to know they’re always learning and they won’t get it the first or third time. I tell my kids that once upon a time, they couldn’t walk. They couldn’t talk. They couldn’t read. Now they do all that because they kept trying again.
Lovely post.
.-= Meryl K Evans´s last blog ..Watch What You Blog, Post and Tweet Online =-.
@Wilson – I like “carrying on” I may have to start using that one my self!
@Barbara – My daughter has taught me many life lessons in her 4 years of life.
@Brad – You’re right, patience does win out. You just have to remember to wait for it. I sometimes have difficulty with that one.
@Smoph – I’m glad to have given you inspiration. My daughters are often my inspiration.
@Meryl – she can be quite stubborn most of the time. It’s good in a lot of way, but at times, very frustrating!
.-= Debbie Yost´s last blog ..Oh, The Possibilities =-.
I almost forgot! Thank you, Joanna, for the opportunity and encouraging me to keep searching for the possibilities.
.-= Debbie Yost´s last blog ..Oh, The Possibilities =-.
Hi Debbie,
I learn as much from my six year old as she learns from me sometimes. In her eyes all things are possible.
Keeping a child-like frame of reference helps me move past fear and blocking.
Cheers
George
.-= Tumblemoose´s last blog ..Positively Excited About the New Blog of the Week =-.
I think Jim Morrison had an interesting grip on how words can be used infinitely to create an image or enigma.
Even when I am writing novels, I think of the ways he just sauteed words into whatever he wanted.
We are under the impression that there are so many rules in the English language, and linguistics period. However, language is evolving as fast as I am writing this comment. It is infinite- let your writing passion go wild-
~Jaybird D
http://www.jayagnello.blogspot.com
.-= ~Jaybird D´s last blog ..TRANSYLVANIA =-.
Hi Joanna, and Debbie,
What a beautiful post.
Debbie, as I was reading this, I knew you were talking about Peanut. My heart hurts for her as I know if she could get the words out, she wouldn’t stop talking. Oh, how much she must want to say.
What I took away from this is how fortunate we are, who can talk, who can write, who can blog and share our thoughts. For me it was a great reminder to not take that ability for granted and even when the words don’t come at the speed we would like, to think about those who have so much to say, but can’t (physically) get the words out.
Reminder to self: Quit complaining about writers block.
Thank you Debbie for a thought provoking post.
.-= Barbara Swafford´s last blog ..It’s About Time =-.
Debbie thanks so much for sharing this piece here and reminding us of the gift of voice. I love what Smoph wrote:
“You have inspired me to seek out mine” – me too.
@ Barbara – thanks so much for sharing those perspectives. You’ve shifted me out of gripes and back to gratitude too.
@ Tumblemoose – I agree, our children teach us as much, if not more than we teach them. Their innocent acceptance of others who are different is humbling at times.
@Jaybird – it certainly is evolving! Especially with all the texting and twitter and other things we have these days. They make us choose our words more wisely.
@ Barbara – Yep, that’s my little Peanut. One day (soon I hope) I’ll be wondering why I ever taught her to talk!
.-= Debbie Yost´s last blog ..Voice and Speech Update =-.