Creatalytical: Two New Expressions for the American Lexicon
The English language is ever reinventing itself. Unlike French, a language that seeks to protect itself from change (and for good reason), English is a chameleon, ever changing to reflect its changing culture.
Consider these words from the 1930s and 1940s, words once common in American life, but no longer even recognized: “zooty,” “spiffy,” “steppin’,” or “George.” Or these words in current use, but never imagined in the 1930s or 1940s: “selfie,” “side-eye,” “download,” or “hang out.”
Words come and words go. Some are stylistic inventions of the moment, words like “zooty” or “steppin’.” Other words are functional, meeting a need in communication or labeling something that has not existed before, words like “iPhone” or “download.”
THIS
With this in mind, I propose the coining of two new expressions, not for reasons of style or even of function, but for reason of need: our need to acknowledge the debt and the respect we owe other people, the debt and respect we owe God.
Underline the words “need” and “owe.”
Narcissism and selfishness are among the predominant characteristics of American culture today. The “selfie” is not only a photographic phenomenon, but a psychological one, even a spiritual one. A wise and witty social observer recently invoked the spirit of G.K. Chesterton when he wrote, “It’s called a ‘selfie’ because ‘narcissistie’ is too hard to spell.
Media, education, even the church evidence our current and obsessive preoccupation with self – “I, me, mine.”
In “The Closing of the American Mind,” Alan Bloom writes that this obsession is so deep in the American psyche that “the self is the modern substitute for the soul.”
The Beatles sang it succinctly in their song, “I, Me, Mine”:
“All through’ the day
I me mine, I me mine, I me mine
All through’ the night
I me mine, I me mine, I me mine
Now they’re frightened of leaving it
Ev’ryone’s weaving it
Coming on strong all the time
All through’ the day I me mine.”
Interpersonal relationships and day-to-day encounters are marked by an undeniable focus on “I/me” and what I think I deserve. Like the words of our times that were not known in the 1940s, neither was today’s narcissism known in the 1940s, or at least, not to the extreme that we see it today.
Therefore, in the interest of addressing this societal need, I propose the coining of two new expressions and invite Americans everywhere to join me in attempting to download them into daily life – in speaking to family, friends, colleagues, in interacting with people in businesses, malls, or church, even on social media.
Expression #1: “Thank you.”
“Thank you.” interjection \ˈthaŋk-ˌyü\
Words one says to express gratitude to another person or group of people; a polite expression of one’s sincere appreciation for something that someone freely does for him or gives to him; an acknowledgement of grace: “I have received what I did not deserve from someone who did not have to give it.”
Examples:
“Thank you for holding the door open for me.”
“Thank you for your purchase in our store today.”
“Thank you for listening to me.”
“Thank you, Mom, for all you have done / do for me.”
“Thank you, Heavenly Father, for your many blessings.”
Expression #2: “Excuse me”
Excuse me. verb \ ik-‘skyooz- me \
To apologize or request pardon for an act that could offend or inconvenience another person; a statement that acknowledges another person, their rights or feelings, often preceded by the word, “please,” or followed by the words, “I’m sorry.” Synonym: “forgive me.” To request grace from another person.
Examples:
“Please excuse me for inconveniencing you.”
“Excuse me for stepping in front of you as you were walking.”
“Please excuse me for not agreeing with you.”
“Excuse me for failing to thank you for your kindness to me, I’m sorry.”
Examples of “Forgive me”:
“Please forgive me for what I have done that hurt you.”
“Heavenly Father, please forgive me for my sins of selfishness.”
Now I’m going to try to use both expressions in the same statement. PLEASE do not attempt this sophisticated maneuver until you have successfully mastered each of the two new expressions. A failure to do so could result in serious injury.
Here we go:
“Please excuse me if my point-of-view differs from yours, but thank you for actually listening to me as I express it (Note: Reader, here’s the special bonus expression you can use when you’ve worked up to it), even as I will now stop talking and actually listen to your opinion as you express it. What you think is important to me because YOU are important to me.”
COIN
Coining new words and phrases is extremely difficult, but who knows, maybe we could actually succeed in working these two into the English language.
More important, maybe we could succeed in working these two values into the American soul again, driving out the “I, me, my” obsession with self. Maybe we could actually succeed in acknowledging the debt and the respect we owe others, and especially God, every day of our lives.
AMEN
To conclude, consider these non-dictionary definitions of forgiveness and gratitude.
“It takes a great deal of character strength to apologize quickly out of one’s heart rather than out of pity. A person must possess himself and have a deep sense of security in fundamental principles and values in order to genuinely apologize.” Steven Covey
“Gratitude bestows reverence, allowing us to encounter everyday epiphanies, those transcendent moments of awe that change forever how we experience life and the world.” John Milton
To say “thank you” or “forgive me” is to acknowledge that I am a person in need of others, and ultimately, I am a person in need of God. “Thank you” says that I am not the giver of grace, but its humble beneficiary.
To be grateful and to ask for grace is to acknowledge grace and the Giver of grace, and every gift, in my life.
Thank you for reading, and for considering, these thoughts. Excuse me if they have offended you, but if they have, I do ask you to pray over them as you study for any evidence of them in The Book given us by the Giver of all grace.
__________
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