Expression

I have always been fond of words and sometimes very frustrated by words. I think both emotions come from my need to express myself. Everyone who knows me knows how much I like to chat, really I find alot of things very interesting and my favorite form of expression is linguistic. Often I will attempt to find just the right word for the moment- however when typing. . . spelling isn't my greatest strength. Anyhow, we took multiple intelligence tests today for one of my education classes and I scored highly linguistic and musical. If you can't use words to describe something, you can always color it with tone, rhythm, or pitch. I didn't score so well on Kinaesthetic or intrapersonal, and everything else was kinda in the middle.

I began to think more about expression and learning. It is facinating to think how well and how differently we all communicate. I found this fun picture this morning -



I think children can often be the easiest communicators, maybe not with words, but with feeling and expression. I also recieved a devotional this morning which encourages positive expressions and actions toward others.

Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.
-Proverbs 16:24 (NIV)

WHEN our church's disaster-relief team arrived in a New Orleans neighborhood, the minister of the church there gave a brief overview of the area. Drive-by shootings occurred nightly; at least one person died each night. Since Hurricane Katrina, these incidents had diminished, but the team was advised to stay together and be aware of their surroundings. As we worked on one of the assigned houses, a car drove by and a group of local residents waved excitedly and yelled, "We love y'all!" This drive-by blessing was totally unexpected and a powerful moment for our team.

Many times since this incident, someone has given me a simple and sincere compliment that uplifted me and made my day brighter. Now, I make a conscious effort to find something good in others and mention it as I walk by them at work or as I pay at the store counter. Through these brief encounters, I hope to provide a "drive-by blessing" that can encourage others and lift them up.
Norma P. Marroquin (Texas, U.S.A.)

Many times we can ecourage others simply by our expression or a few kind words. Inflection is always something that I love as well - I think it is great to surprise someone by how you say "good morning" and not just the typical grumble we are all so used to. Meaning behind the words really connects expression with linguistics. It's all something interesting to think about and play with. . .

Hope you are staying warm in this negative degree weather! Think warm thoughts!

God Bless you and yours,
your sister in Christ~Erin