words

Building Bridges

/ LaShona Sellers / Leave a comment
Building Bridges by Lorenzo Quinn; Rendered by Halcyon Art International

“From a wise mind comes wise speech;
the words of the wise are persuasive.” -Proverbs 16:23

“Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.” -Proverbs 16:24

“The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.” -Proverbs 18:21

There have been many times over the past few weeks when I’ve thought “Hmm, I should write something about that.” When everyone else seems to be opining, reflecting, musing, and inspiring, there is sometimes undue pressure to add our own voice to the chorus.

Instead, I’ve just been pondering the weight of words. Words are powerful. What we say and write can lift or crush a spirit, promote peace or provoke chaos.

What do I want my words to do? I want my words to build bridges. Bridges to the blessed Trinity on which my faith & hope are built. Bridges of grace, understanding and forgiveness. I want to build bridges culturally and racially; though, honestly, recent times have made me consider dismantling my bridges, taking my pieces and quietly sitting in my own little corner. But Love convicts and compels me differently. So I will build, knowing I’m not perfect and I won’t always get it right but building bridges, I must.

What do you want your words to do?

Never Delete

/ LaShona Sellers / Leave a comment

Have you ever felt as if you’ve written a phrase or sentence so perfect, so poetic only to realize it just doesn’t fit the piece you’re writing? As a writer, one of the most valuable bits of advice I’ve received is to “never delete.” Words, phrases, sentences, paragraphs that may not work in one piece may be perfect for another. As a result, I’ve created a file of my deleted ideas and words, my own personal word bank ready for withdrawal.

The past few weeks I’ve run the gamut of emotions from grief, to anger, to fear, to hope and joy. And with each of these emotions there has been a flow of ideas I couldn’t fully flesh out, words that just wouldn’t jibe and dueling sentiments I couldn’t quite convey. But I’m okay with that. And so words have been saved, deposits have been made and perhaps one day the withdrawal of those words will present a clear picture of my mind’s  musings. In the meantime, let’s write on, friends.