Have you ever caught yourself saying "always" or "never" and know it's exaggeration.  I know I have, more times than I would like to admit.  I was talking to a friend about absolutes and dualities like always, never, good, bad, wrong, right, black, white, and other words that seem to have a quality that feels a bit like a brick wall, or an obstacle.  Take the word "can't" for example.  No!  Don't take it!  Get rid of it as quick as you can, and wrap it up good before you throw it away, so no one will find it.  Some words aught to be removed from the dictionary, like "can't".  What good are these words?  I wonder how many people don't reach their potential for the simple fact they keep using that ever so popular word, can't.  What about "should"?  Who likes to be told what they "should" think, or what they "should" do?  If we had less judgmental words in our language, would we be less judgmental?  Wouldn't that be pleasant?

Anyhow, it made me think of this image, out of a book (rough draft) I wrote quite some time ago, called "The Cosmic Dream Book".  It's sort of an adventure story.  There are many characters, but the main ones are "The Little Traveler" and "Chaos Pig" (I am thinking of renaming the pig, "Harmony Pig", but, hey, maybe a little chaos in our lives keeps us patient and humble).  In one of the "chapters", the two travel to the land of words.  After many run-ins in the land of words, and after making it across the sea of the subconscious, they find there's one more thing to consider when they get to the shore.  The rough verse reads,"We made it to shore, but still there is more, one more reminder of words and their use.  Will we watch what we say, and not chatter away?  It's dangerous, a tongue on the loose." Click here to view or print what tends to happen when we use absolutes, A Tongue on the Loose (PDF file).