Do you think we are sometimes a little too uptight about the exclamatory terms we allow ourselves and others to use?
What about our kids?
Clearly, there is a set of words that the general public considers “curse” words… They start with S, B, D, F, A, and H.
These words have many meanings and many uses.
They are each a thing, an action or a place. And, yet we have managed to turn them all into other things as well and can use them in so many different scenarios.
Here’s what I want us all to think about…
How did they become the worst of the worst?
What is the big deal about those words?
If you go to England and say “bloody” or “wanker”, you have now cursed. You say those same words in the United States and you won’t even turn a head. Well, maybe with the word, wanker, but definitely not bloody.
Okay, so we won’t say those specific words. We will all make up different words that sound similar to those words and say those instead.
Enter the words crap, dang, darn, freakin’, butt, and heck. Or if you live in the South… dagnabbit, dadbern, cottonpickin’, and sugarwater.
Notice how I was able to write out all those words instead of only typing the first letter??
You see, I know that if I had typed the first set of words, I would have lost quite a few readers right away. However, typing out the second step of words was no problem.
Again… I ask, WHY??
Who got to decide which words were the greatest offenders? Who got to yield the big red pen and mark out the words that would be frowned upon if used in church?
If I say the “F” word in church, I’m liable to lose a few friends and cause all the parents to not allow their kids to hang out with my kids. Now, if I say “freakin’”, hardly anyone will even notice. It’s business as usual.
All that being said, there are definitely those people who have problems with all the second set of words as well… all the substitutions, if you will. You know… those that feel that if you say ‘darn it’, you might as well have said ‘damn it’.
And then, there is a whole other subset of people that have issues with words like, stupid and hate.
So many rules!!
With all these rules, it’s really hard to know what to say, when to say and in front of whom!
Our kids are allowed to say dang it, darn it, butt, dumb, crap (sparingly), and heck. And probably some others I’m not thinking about right now.
Honestly, though, the only real reason we don’t let them say the “big” words is because of the way people will view them and judge them when those words come out of their mouths.
I don’t want my kids being judged by the exclamatory words they use. It’s such a silly thing to judge a person for anyway. It has nothing to do with their heart.
I have friends and family, that are fond of the “F” word. Those same friends and family are some of the biggest “givers” on the planet. You know, the “shirt off your back” kind of person.
Yet, I know that these lovely people are judged because of the exclamatory words that they choose to use.
People will judge them because they say the “F” word, without even noticing they are helping an old lady cross the street, or picking up the bill for a stranger in a restaurant, or letting someone go ahead of them in traffic, or sticking up for someone that is being treated poorly.
Here is what I think… Curse words should not be used towards someone. Calling someone a name isn’t acceptable. Unless you are calling them a “F”in’ Rock Star!
Using ANY exclamatory word to explain something you find amazing, ridiculous, or beautiful should be a choice that is left up to the person saying the word. And they should be able to use any word they choose without fear of judgment.
Do you find yourself censoring yourself in certain circles for fear of judgment?
This post was going to be my “E” post for Blogging Through the Alphabet, but I’m a week late to link up. At any rate if you want to check out the other “E” posts, click the button below! :)
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