Ever spend a nice evening outside, then the next day notice a bug bite or two…right on your ankle or something, where a normal motion sets you into an itchy frenzy? Bugs like to take advantage of that twilight, grayish part of the evening.
It made me think of biting words. Sometimes things said in conversation can really end up itching later. Biting words can hide in many places: the twilight of a grey issue, the cover of sarcasm, or the swarm of an argument. And just like a sneaky, well-placed bite…words that hurt have a way of coming back to bother someone long after the initial nip.
I can think of words that have left a mark on me. And just like a bug bite, an ordinary situation can trigger the memory of what was said and that wound starts to itch all over again.
I can also recall a few times in my past where I’ve hidden a true bite in the middle of an otherwise lighthearted exchange. My mother told me once that I was the master of the hidden correction. I’d say something in passing, and hours later the person would register what I was *really* saying. Sometimes that skill is useful. But sometimes it’s just little more than a bug bite.
It makes me want to guard my words, so that I don’t take advantage of the cover of twilight to get in there and draw blood.
It made me think of biting words. Sometimes things said in conversation can really end up itching later. Biting words can hide in many places: the twilight of a grey issue, the cover of sarcasm, or the swarm of an argument. And just like a sneaky, well-placed bite…words that hurt have a way of coming back to bother someone long after the initial nip.
I can think of words that have left a mark on me. And just like a bug bite, an ordinary situation can trigger the memory of what was said and that wound starts to itch all over again.
I can also recall a few times in my past where I’ve hidden a true bite in the middle of an otherwise lighthearted exchange. My mother told me once that I was the master of the hidden correction. I’d say something in passing, and hours later the person would register what I was *really* saying. Sometimes that skill is useful. But sometimes it’s just little more than a bug bite.
It makes me want to guard my words, so that I don’t take advantage of the cover of twilight to get in there and draw blood.
“One great use of words is to hide our thoughts.” Voltaire
“I will watch my ways and keep my tongue from sin.” Psalm 39:1
Thanks for the reminder to use care when I'm speaking to others ~ nothin' worse than a biter.
ReplyDeleteThank you also for making me think about the words "that have left a mark on me". That happened recently BUT as I reflected on the situation I realized that it was my own spin on the words of someone else that bit me ~ not their actual words at all. It isn't always that way but I need to remember that sometimes I hear wrong.
Thanks for encouraging me to ponder things...
Have a great weekend Regina!