For years as a language teacher, I’ve been telling students that “language is an agreement.” People need to agree on meaning in order to communicate. This was hammered home to me recently by a video that I saw from actor, Clayton Farris. His “Millenial Breakup” skit was almost unintelligible to me. I had to look up several phrases and I’m still not sure that I have it right. More than likely it’s a similar frustration that high school students feel reading Shakespeare! The words that are chosen seem like they are part of a code that doesn’t enhance but rather detracts from meaning. It’s a generational divide that breeds misunderstanding.

The problem is not that we have different words or sayings. It’s that we either don’t want to understand the message or the communicator doesn’t care to be understood. We need to agree to listen and agree to speak to be understood. Unfortunately, in today’s world, people don’t seem overly interested in agreeing enough to understand. It’s an uncomfortable situation. People talking so much that they cannot hear anything.

So hear this! We’re in this together. ‘Tis the east and the future is the sun! We are low-key screwed if we can’t see that we are but on the world’s stage playing the roles of Karens, Stans and Basics. To be or not be an a-hole! That is the question! Whether it is nobler to get your likes for saying nothing of substance or swim in a sea of vulnerability!

Agree to say something that someone else can hear. Something of substance. Maybe you won’t even need to use words but say it anyway. Then listen! It feels like we’ve been shouting for so long we’ve forgotten how to say.

Pete

“I don’t want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don’t want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed.”

― Lloyd Dobler “Say Anything”