He was so right echoing in my mind in the sanctuary in the power of words, especially the power to hurt the ability to cut to the quick to leave lasting deep permanent scars so hard to mend, to heal the old saying is that sticks and stones are the enemy that names cannot hurt, leave lasting damage but oh if it were only so, if imprudent or malicious words were like water running off a leaf in the rainforest, even a torrent no threat but they are like water that erodes reverberation, exacerbation, water that corrodes, eats away at the foundation the core of a person, their sense of worth, or being, a word can cause wounds deep raw wounds when words can save, lift up, build the body join people across deep chasms of history love, the source of the word, the gospel, the good news, an equal measure of our heritage bringing joy, happiness, comfort these too are our choice based on the turn of the tiller the rudder of our tongue