I Believe In The Power Of Words by Lindsey Hofer

I believe in the power of words. Words can inspire. Inspire life and love, inspire dreams and goals, inspire friendship and laughter, inspire to make a difference. And that's all we can ever hope to do with them, use the resource we have to make the world a better place. But within so much good is bound to come some bad, and that's when the power of words can inspire hate.

Adolf Hitler inspired millions of people to believe his crazy, hate filled notions. He destroyed millions of lives, for he discovered the power of words. And with that, worlds were left in ruins. The fault does not lie in the hands of the man that learned the power he could have with words, but in the hands of those who knew of the power they had, but choose not to use it.

So many of us know the feeling. Stage fright, standing up in front of a crowd, putting everything we have with them, our thoughts, our feelings. Knowing full well that there is little chance of us receiving anything in return. But that is what we must do. We must overcome the butterflies that seem to multiple with every second, and the sweat that has suddenly begun to slip down our foreheads even though the room is drafty and cold. We must overcome our mind set a single person can not make a difference, for if we choose our words carefully, they can make all the difference in the world.

If we don't match the words of our opponents, we will be defeated. Silence has destroyed us. Silence allows evil to triumph, anything would if nothing offers to fight back. The racial slurs, and casual insults, are thrown around so loosely, so easily. For no one has ever addressed the hate that s hidden with them. Have we allowed hate to win once more?

I like to believe that good words have triumphed over evil ones, that love triumphs over hate. I'd like to continue to believe the fantasy that our beloved cowboy will miraculously survive the gunshot to the heart and still have the strength to shoot the scraggily looking bad guy. But said fantasy will disappear if we wallow in our shells. If we let silence overcome us and do not stand up for what we believe is right. Words can inspire. I believe in the power of words.