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Words in print can captivate, propel, impede, inform, deceive, inspire, mock, connect, isolate… inarguably written words contain powerful potential.

Unlike spoken words, where auditory tone influences meaning (as well as body language if the words are being spoken in front of those that are listening), writers have a responsibility to assure the words written convey the meaning the writer intended. In a sense, what it requires is tenacity on the part of the writer to shape his/her words into a form which best portrays what the writer set out to pen. In my opinion, when a writer has done this well, it is artistry and it is amazing.

Admittedly, not all written works meet the criteria of ‘best portraying what the writer intended’. I suspect there are a number of factors &/or reasons for this. In my own writing, I’ve found the two biggest culprits when my writing falls short are time & carelessness. Often a little proofreading would have saved a whole lot of grief.

I received an email yesterday containing a variety of headlines that highlights the importance of proofreading:

• Man Kills Self Before Shooting Wife and Daughter
• Something Went Wrong in Jet Crash, Expert Says
  
• Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers
  
• Miners Refuse to Work after Death
  
• Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant
  
• War Dims Hope for Peace
  
• If Strike Isn’t Settled Quickly, It May Last Awhile
  
• Cold Wave Linked to Temperatures
  
• Enfield ( London ) Couple Slain; Police Suspect Homicide
  
• Red Tape Holds Up New Bridges
  
• Man Struck By Lightning: Faces Battery Charge
  
• New Study of Obesity Looks for Larger Test Group
  
• Astronaut Takes Blame for Gas in Spacecraft
  
• Kids Make Nutritious Snacks
  
• Local  High School Dropouts Cut in Half
  
• Hospitals are Sued by 7 Foot Doctors
  
• Typhoon Rips Through Cemetery; Hundreds Dead

Whatever your reaction is to those headlines, may it serve as a reminder to all of us to be a little more careful in the use of our words – or at least take time to proofread what we’ve written/typed before we send it on in an email, tweet or post.

It’s raining tonight. A gentle rain. Quiet enough that I didn’t notice it as I was going through the bedtime routine with the girls. Only when I opened the front door to take the dog outside did the rain capture my attention.

I heard the rain fall on the broad leaves of the hosta plants next to our front porch – each drop gently and firmly announcing its arrival as it landed on its intended destination. To my surprise, it wasn’t the sound of the rain I noticed first. It was the smell of the rain.

The smell, if I was forced to use one word, smelled like summer.

Sometimes when rain comes, it comes with cooler temperatures. Sometimes it comes with more humid weather. Other times, like tonight, the temperature is much like it was before the rain. This evening the rain smells thick. Thick, like the warmth of a blanket just after it’s taken out of a dryer.

The rain also smells fresh. The smells of grass, newly grown plants, freshly turned soil all mingle in the air with the water droplets before hitting the ground. 

Standing barefoot on the porch, I closed my eyes and breathed in the thick, fresh smell of the rain and realized it’s one of the smells of summer.

What are some things that bring summer to mind for you?

With the move to this site, I thought I might list out some miscellaneous thoughts rattling around in my head.

• Today was a very cool day watching 47 people be baptized.
• Yesterday & today were awesome watching so many people from Crossroads come in to help set up & tear down.
• I’m thankful that we don’t meet in a gym every week.
• It bugs me that I like naps – I can remember when I thought naps were for old people.
• I’m thankful for my friends from small group – they are AWESOME.
• I’m thankful that our small group is going back to meeting every two weeks.
• Starting the last segment of essentials, I’m looking forward to it.
• I wonder if I’m being idiotic taking essentials green right now (5 weeks class)
• Why is the filling of a cool mint oreo mushier than the filling of a regular oreo?

I think I will end with that final thought!