The Strongest Word

A conversation I was a part of on February 9th gave me pause, as my guy uttered what I believe to be the strongest word in pretty much any language. It passed between us barely noticed, until I stopped for a second to give it full credit. And when I did so, he admitted that he really didn't think on it too hard - it was just something he said.

Perhaps you're wondering "hmmmm is it 'can'?" Sometimes it is "can" ... though the word "unable" has power, too.

Is it "yes"? Maybe - 'tho it could also be "no", depending on the question being addressed.

What about "hope"? Contrary to the obvious current political slant, I'd say that's still a non-action word, as is "dream" or "wish". Even "pray", which is for sure an action word, needs more to it than that. They're all good words - heck, they're sometimes great words - but they're not power words.

Maybe one would guess, given the date, that I'm referring to the word "love" but that is a very fragile, very precious word written with a timid hand. "Hate", on the other side of the equation, is written in a thick bold pen but it loses momentum as it rolls over emotionally, like a wave almost.

There are times when "future" is a word with great strength ... and times when "history" and "past" outshine it.

Maybe it is "do" but it can take more strength in certain situations to "not".

"I" is a weak word. Alone, singular, "I" as a word, an an idea, has little consequence, very small importance, and unmeasurable result. In casual Spanish, "I" is seldom used. It is simply understood that the speaker is referring to themselves and their own experiences unless otherwise stated.

And, while we're at it, "you" isn't very strong either. "You" is just as alone and as powerless as "I".

Other candidates may be "drive" or "focus" or "goal" ... "achievement" or "reward" or "successful" but these are momentarily strong words. They'll lose their power over time. While we're at it, "power" and "strong" suffer the same parameters as these others.

"Is". I admit, "is" is a contender. "Is" is mighty strong stuff but, just like "yes" being balanced by "no", at times one could defeat "is" just by following it up with "not".

I've used the word once in this post already. It probably slipped right past you, as it nearly did me.

In my humble opinion, 'tho I have highlighted 26 different possibilities for "strongest word", there is a shining, bright, crisp and extremely obvious winner.




The word is "us".





Happy Valentines Day.


To us.