“The Magic Brush” is a folk tale from China. Years ago, I developed my own telling of this story. I put a green brocade robe on the old Chinese gentleman who gave Ma Lien a magic brush. I also described the old gentleman has having a flowing white beard. At the end of the story when the magic brush is used to paint a storm, I used the words: “and he painted a veritable storm.”
I thought, Is that a real word? So, I looked it up in Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary. At this time dictionaries were printed books and the Internet dictionary had not appeared yet. The word veritable was not in my dictionary. I wondered if I had made the word up. However, it fit the story and the mood I wanted to create. I decided to use it anyway. The text of my version of The Magic Brush can be read at www.rosethestorylady.net
While I was writing this blog post, I googled veritable on dictionary.com and found this definition: “being in fact the thing named and not false, unreal, or imaginary.” I also learned that the first known use of veritable was in the 15th century. I clearly had not invented the word.
Did I simply miss finding veritable when I tried to find that word in my dictionary 30 years ago? Or was I using an abridged dictionary that didn’t contain veritable? I don’t know. But. after all these years, I’m pleased to learn that the word I had chosen to speak was a real word and was used correctly.
Most of the time my conversations are an exchange of ideas or stories. It doesn’t really matter what I say as long as I am engaged in the conversation. But there are times when saying the right words is extremely important. And choosing the right words can be challenging. Complimenting someone when they know or believe that they have not done well may feel false to them. I wonder how I can express sympathy for someone else’s loss without saying something like, “I know how you feel.” How can my words build someone up instead of tearing them down? I might say the words, “I love you no matter what.” On the surface those words appear to be supportive, but actually imply that I don’t approve of the choices that have been made. There are times when I need to be silent and show someone I care by my actions.
My words have consequences. They may lift another up and give inspiration and joy. Or they may cause sorrow and pain. If I pause before I speak, if I consider who I am talking to, if I consider the environment we are in, then my words will have more power. Just as I use spell check to edit my written word, I can use “think-check” to monitor the words I speak when using the right words really matters. And sometimes the right words to say are no words.
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