Right Words 1/12/2024

When speaking to others
Are the words chosen
Gentle and sweet
Or are they sharp
And sting?

Are the harsh words familiar
And often repeated
Within an
Agitated existence? 

Breaking the cycle
Of how one reacts
To words spoken
Is difficult to accomplish
For the other’s perceptive
About what one said
Plays an important part
Of the interpretation
And reaction. 

What was the trigger word spoken
That felt like an attack?
For that’s the indicator
Of what might happen.

Wrong words chosen
And wrong words spoken
Leads to an incorrect interpretation
Releasing a set of feelings
In the cycle of
Speaking and reacting. 

At each point in the conversation
Breakdown can occur
Changing the outcome
And reactions
To each other.

 How to reframe from
Returning
To the familiar agitated way
When speaking and reacting
To another? 

Upon noticing
The familiar cycle
Of
Speaking and reacting
Step back to breath
Before another word
Is spoken. 

Choosing the
Right words
Within the right presence
Of mindful breathing
Is the only way
To have a
Loving conversation.

Maggie Spaulding
Poem Author