Sunday Scribblings - "Yes"

In a land where truth is king, every word we speak would be a promise. Truth would anchor each word to the reality of what happened in the past or the reality of what will happen in the future. Every “yes” we spoke would be a testimony to the fact that things really were just as we said they were, or a vow that things will be just as we said they will be.

In this land where truth is king, our words would be filled with new weight and beauty. What an impressive statement it would be when a politician said, “Yes,” to upgrading all of the hospitals in the state! What a breathtaking claim it would be when a criminal on trial said, “Yes,” to telling the whole truth, and nothing but the truth! What a precious moment it would be when a wife said, “Yes,” to loving her husband for the rest of her life!

Yet in our land, our words are flimsy, uncertain things, tied only to a moment. When we say, “Yes,” perhaps it is only a shorthand way of saying, “At this current point in time, I have the intention of doing what you suggest, but I reserve the right to change my mind at a moment’s notice.” Perhaps it is even a way of saying, “I will agree with what you say, not because I think it is right or because I will do what you suggest, but merely to make you happy and keep the peace.” How weak our words become when they are tied to our flighty moods and personalities, or to our unstable circumstances!

Our hearts become a little more broken each time we find we cannot trust the words of others. An old story tells of a wicked father who raises his daughter with no contact from the outside world, and teaches her to think that, “Yes,” means “No”, and “No,” means “Yes”. From when she was very young, he always said, “Yes” when he meant, “No”, and “No” when he meant, “Yes”, and taught her to do the same. When the family’s house is suddenly engulfed by fire one night, the girl escapes onto the street, but her father remains sleeping inside. The fireman, trying to decide if he will risk entering the burning house to search for any other occupants, asks the girl, “Is there anyone still inside?” and the girl answers, “No.” The story ends there, but I wonder if the daughter, upon entering the real world, was struck by extreme confusion when people said, “No” (which in her mind, meant “Yes”) and then did not do what they said they would do. Perhaps if we are raised by parents who do what they promise and who teach us to tell the truth, we are similarly shocked when we encounter people who say, “Yes”, and then do not do what they say they will do.

Our lives should be the grand sum of the things we say yes to. “Yes” is a magical word that brings us wonderful opportunities, yet also great challenges. “Yes” should not turn into, “No” as soon as the challenges seem too tough. Such a life is an unfinished symphony, full of half-written melodies that trail off into nothingness. “Yes” should also not be said too lightly – or our lives become a modern jazz piece, with many overlapping, discordant phrases, but no connecting theme. A “yes” is a promise to keep saying, “yes” for as long as possible, even when you don’t feel like it anymore. A life full of kept promises is a masterpiece composition, a progression through the beauty of an intention, and the struggle to make it a reality, until everything that should be done, has been done.