I love words. I love languages. I love to find the meanings of words and then use them appropriately. I’m a stuffed shirt and have been known to correct people in my outloud voice for misusing words. I try to keep this inside my head, but it does not always work. I’ve been the bossy big sister for far too long and it leaks out sometimes. For the record, I’m always deeply ashamed of this. I do know how unsightly it is.
One might imagine that someone like me would despise profanity. Nope, just the opposite. I kind of like it. I enjoy it’s spitting rebellion. I take great delight in the shock that people try to cover up when they hear those words come out of someone’s mouth. I think that shock is really funny. Then, of course, I immediately feel bad and guilty for laughing at someone else’s expense and outrage. Because, at the end of the day, that is also wrong. So, I try very diligently to teach my children other words to say when they are angry or frustrated.
Here’s the thing though. Throughout the course of my life I’ve observed the list of allowable words grow narrower and narrower. Now some would say that on network television this is not the case. But it is. How many times do you see the word “penis” in print? And how many of you just took a breath when you saw it there? See? How about “breast” out of context? Same thing … It’s tiresome. Myself, I like the word “boob” to talk about breasts and even among women talk of bras brings about nervous laughter. Come ON, people … it’s UNDERWEAR … we all use it.
Using words properly and appropriately will not do anything to you. Well, it might give you the appearance of intelligence. However, except on certain television shows and movies, there is no magic in words. They are not charms or spells. There is nothing sacred or profane in them. There is nothing to be afraid of. Nothing to shrink away from. Words are a tool with which we communicate ideas.
Over at Waving or Drowning, Mike recently wrote a post entitled “To Hell with Romans 13.” Is the title provocative? Yes. Blaphemous? Perhaps. Heresy? I don’t know. Profanity? No. There is nothing profane about that title. Yet one commenter was disgusted by the “profanity.” I thought he was going to faint with the vapors. Well, for heaven’s sake, if you have a problem with it then argue your point. Don’t whip out your pretend profanity policeman’s badge and be a sissy with the vapors.
Grow up. Get over your bad self. Who died and made you God? Oh … whoops. You’re not. I’m just so done with all the damn rules and regulations. This person is made faint over the word hell, that person won’t allow the word breast on their blog, another can’t bear to sit under the teaching of women. A school invites people to speak on campus, then dis-invites them when the heat gets too hot from their fundamentalist alumnae. Every church website I go to has their list of fundamental beliefs that they want a body to sign up for in order to become a member. One that I saw recently has pages worth; that indicates faith in knowledge rather than faith in Jesus. You know what we’re all becoming? Little gods. This is what got Lucifer thrown out of heaven folks … the desire to be right even more than God. It’s called “pride.” And if you’re so damn full of it that you have to be right all the time … then you really are full of it.
