The pen is mightier than the sword, so they say.  But that mightiness, when one thinks about it, has very little to do with the pen.  Words are the real source of the power.  Though many of them look rather pedestrian, when brought together with skill, they can topple even the most worthy opponent, win the heart of a beloved, or make a Madeleine jump off the page and into the mouth of the reader.

Think of the first potent word most of us learn, two simple letters, placed side by side.  N-O.  No.  A small utterance.  It doesn’t look like much, but it speaks volumes.   We hear it and are brought to attention.

Another powerful word discovered early in life is mine.  Though we are tiny when we come to know it, it gives us our first taste of wealth and power.  This teddy bear is mine.  Those blocks?  Mine! These dolls?  All mine, mine, mine! So exciting!

Until recently, I had thought I’d reached a sort of plateau with words.  Even when I learned a new one (coming soon – to this very post!), the excitement wore off rather quickly.  Ho hum, yes, another word.  I’ll put it in the files, find a good use for it, and be off on my merry way.

Well, gentle readers, imagine my surprise when I started using an old and somewhat faded word to dizzying effects, lightening the burden of some very cumbersome thoughts.  Sound the trumpets because here it comes!

** Sometimes **

Sometimes?  Really?  Yes, really.  Look:

I abhor the solipsistic (the new, dollar word) nature of my blog – sometimes.

I am terribly lazy – sometimes.

The world is an awful place – sometimes.

Election coverage is so annoying – sometimes.

I am so negative – sometimes.

Ahhh, it just feels better, doesn’t it?  Thanks to my not-so-new, favorite, dime-store word, I am turning frowns upside down, am less quick to anger and frustration, and generally happier – most of the time.  Try it, and see if it doesn’t work for you, too.