Every word a story
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Just before our eighth snowstorm of the season, I wanted to drop to my knees, raise my arms toward the unforgiving sky and shout “uncle” in surrender. As if that would do any good.
Uncle. I repeated the word a couple of times aloud — and I realized just how weird that word sounds.
You try it. Uncle. Uncle. (Aside: Did you ever watch the ’60s spy drama, the “Man from U.N.C.L.E.?” I loved that show.)
Anyway, most of the time, the word uncle seems as normal as a coffee cup. But then, when you really pay attention to the consonants, it begins to sound as if the word came from a language spoken in the Andromeda Galaxy.
Although the word sounds peculiar upon dissection, those five letters, in order, are rich with meaning, such as in Uncle Don or Uncle Jay.
When I thought about the word, images of two late uncles swirled in my mind. I pictured my Uncle Don in a white button-down shirt, his sleeves rolled up as he counted pills behind the counter at his Rexall Drug Store in Siloam Springs, Ark. And my mind hears Don make some sort of wry comment, because it was his nature to do so.
As for my Uncle Jay, tall and always the Southern gentleman, I recalled some of his anti-prairie wisecracks. His disparaging Kansas comments were offered for the sole purpose of making me smile. A few years back, when my Aunt Norma made Jay take her from Arkansas to Larned so that she could see the places of her childhood, he was quick to inform me that his venture into Kansas was a “once-in-a-lifetime trip.”
So that’s what uncle is for me — some great men and a collection of experiences. Uncles are fine indeed, but so are words. And a simple, single word can unlock a vault of memories.
Emily Dickinson once said, “I know nothing in the world that has as much power as a word. Sometimes I write one, and look at it, until it begins to shine.”
Chair, barn, river, snake, fire. These are just common, everyday words. But what comes to your mind when you ponder the word chair? Do you think of your favorite place to sit? Or maybe you chair a committee, and that’s the first thing that comes to mind.
Take a moment to try on the word. If you had to select one picture to present as your chair image, would your mind settle on the rickety porch chair where your grandfather whittled in the evenings? Or maybe you’d picture the leather-backed chair in which you rocked babies to sleep.
Words aren’t just words — they’re movies; they’re splashes of color on the walls of your mind. Words are the stories of your life.
How about barn? What does that word mean to you?
Barn takes me back to my grandparents’ farm near Pawnee Rock. I see the corrugated tin siding and a sliding door on an overhead rail. Inside, the stale air smelled of cattle and long-gone horses and there was an odor of thick grease as I stood near Grandpa’s combine.
I remember one day when my brother and cousins and I climbed the ladder to the hayloft (where there was an unexplained cat skeleton) and, shouting with delight, we leapt through an opening in the loft floor onto the stack of nicely-formed hay bales, over and over, until Uncle (there’s that word again) Laramie asked us to stop because we were breaking down the bales.
River, snake, fire.
Pick any ordinary old word and bounce it around in your head. Think of the images and events you associate with that word. These pictures, the people and adventures, are your life stories. Expand on one word, then another and another, and soon you’ll have a memoir to share with your children and grandchildren.
We all know the line, “A picture is worth a thousand words,” but I think it works the other way, too.
A word contains a thousand stories.
Cheryl Unruh can be reached at cheryl@flyoverpeople.net. “Flyover People” is online at www.flyoverpeople.net.
Comments
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reddog (anonymous) says...
Republicians and Democrats. The Democrats have donkey ideas but the Republicans have their trunk of tricks.
February 16, 2010 at 10:11 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (anonymous) says...
Mosquito Government, a small little blood sucker that ends up eating your lunch.
February 16, 2010 at 10:38 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (anonymous) says...
The Free Way. A multiple Progressive highway with ATM interchanges.
February 16, 2010 at 10:44 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (anonymous) says...
Puff--The magic dragon
February 16, 2010 at 10:52 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (anonymous) says...
Positive. With all this manure, there has to be a pony somewhere.
February 16, 2010 at 10:59 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (anonymous) says...
Fed Up Populists. A group of common folks that want to audit the Fed to promote transpartency.
February 16, 2010 at 11:06 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (anonymous) says...
Revolt'n Development. We had it in the bag but the zipper broke.
February 16, 2010 at 11:18 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (anonymous) says...
Political Quandary. When the hook for that big fish lands in your buttocks, you might have a lot of pull but, don't want to exercise it.
February 16, 2010 at 11:35 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (anonymous) says...
Spell Pumpkin Pie in Pig Latin. P U ENCAN ENCAN Y, Y U ENCAN PUMPKIN PIE.
February 16, 2010 at 11:41 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (anonymous) says...
Political Rebel Hack. An expert in starting fires with gusto and gyration.
February 16, 2010 at 11:53 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (anonymous) says...
The Reddog Bloger. One who is magnanimous.
February 17, 2010 at 12:05 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (anonymous) says...
Introspection. Never a dull moment and never look back cause something might catch up with you, like a passageway to the eternal. Two guys were wondering if they play baseball in heaven and one passed away and one day the other fellow heard a voice that said, "I have some good news and some bad news, the good news is, we do play baseball in heaven and now the bad news, your pitching tomorrow night."
February 17, 2010 at 12:33 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (anonymous) says...
A word contains a thousand stories but, the blueprint for eternal life is the WORD. An atheist in a casket is someone all dressed up and no where to go.
February 17, 2010 at 12:53 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
mslater (Matt Slater) says...
Seriously dude?
February 17, 2010 at 3:22 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
biscuitboy (anonymous) says...
Since he is dead I doubt if he cares where he goes.
February 17, 2010 at 6:43 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
biscuitboy (anonymous) says...
In fact, I doubt if he had any thing to do with being all dressed up.....or in a casket for that matter.
February 17, 2010 at 6:45 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (anonymous) says...
I know where he is going, I was just being nice. Get into the Word and live forever, pretty good deal.
February 17, 2010 at 9:19 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
seriouslyfolks (anonymous) says...
Truth.
February 17, 2010 at 11:12 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )