One Little Word

I decided to do a bit of a social experiment on Facebook tonight. At about 9:30 Central, I posted a status with a single word just to see what kind of response I get. That word was carefully chosen, as it's one that can have many different reactions depending on the circumstances. That word was "Baby."

At 9:45, I measured the results of my experiment. I had, with one word, received one "like" and convinced three commenters that my wife was pregnant. I also had one Bieber reference. Now, I will never say never, and I know you love me, but I am not a Belieber. And also, my wife is, in fact, not pregnant.

Now for some apologies. First, to my wife, I'm sorry for making people think you were pregnant. Also, to those of you who went along with thinking she was, I'm sorry for the apparent deception. And finally, to the Bieber commenter, I'm sorry for calling you out as totally wrong.

I do, however, believe my experiment was quite successful. I wanted to prove how much power was in just one word. Even to have just one person convinced is a lot of power. But to have more than that is astounding!

Knowing that one word has that much power, what kind of power do our conversations have? The right combination of words has the power to either give life or to take life away. Our words are powerful, and using great care in what we say is more than necessary. What are your words saying?

Thank you to all who unknowingly took part in my experiment. Here's a fun picture to remember it by.


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