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Tagged ‘Thoughts‘

“I Am Here” Conversations of Hope

Three years ago, I began writing occasional posts reflecting upon significant observations about the conversationarid-cracked-ground with life that we as humans are daily engaging. Some of my posts were personal in nature, and some general. For one year I enjoyed the weekly opportunity to land with something meaningful to write about, write it, and respond to comments that followed. In 2010 my personal journey took a detour down a path that narrowed my scope, ability, and vision to write about anything. Life seemingly stopped. The creative dried up, the spontaneous flow of ideas and observations shrank into a day to day mode of surviving. My conversation with life and all of its granduer was reduced to a murmer with life.  How does this happen? What did this mean and what did I do? Where was hope in the midst of the conversation that seemed absent of life? Sometimes in life silence gives birth to a new voice that has been longing to be spoken.

Eventually, I will expand more upon the details of what I am stating and asking above, but for now and at this juncture, I am ready to begin writing about the journey that has culminated many new awakenings and precedes what I anticipate will be a contribution to whomever reads these posts.

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Everyday is a “Conversation with Life,” understanding and being engaged in the conversation is part of the labor of life, and the labor of love for life. What happens though when that conversation dwindles to a few mere sentences? More to come. As the birth of new Life is celebrated during this Christmas Season I welcome new beginings, hope, light, and life. I welcome the birth of Christ!

What is Your Conversation with Life?

If someone were to ask you, “What is your conversation with life?” What would you say? Your answer might be, “Oh, uh, my conversation now is with you, what do you mean?” Or they may refer to conversation meaning to talk. Well, as I mentioned earlier, all of us are having a conversation with life. Every waking moment, thought, feeling, relational engagement, or circumstance is in fact a conversation with life.

Conversation comes from the Latin ‘convertere’ which means to turn around or transform. It was a compound verb formed from the prefix ‘com’, and ‘vertere’, to turn. From the Latin ‘vertere’ originated a specialized form ‘vertare’ denoting repeated action. From it came  ‘versari’ and then developed to eventually produce‘conversari’ which means to dwell, live, associate or communicate with others. Conversation got passed from ‘converser’ (French) into English and suggests the notion of dwelling and social life. Conversation never meant ‘to talk’ until the late 16th century.

Why all of this root word analysis? I think it is important to note that the word conversation originally meant something much different from how we define it today. Conversation originally meant to transform or to turn around. It meant to dwell or associate. Imagine if more often we realized that our conversations have the influence and power to change. How would we handle our conversations knowing that they are a catalyst to literally transform others or to be transformed? So… what is your Conversation with Life and how is it offering you and others a place of dwelling?