Thursday 14 February 2013

Word City




Once upon a time there existed, and still exists now, somewhere, a place where the mist hides the long vision, and near where the horizon can be touched with the hand, a kingdom which, odd as it may seem took the name of Lexicon.

Sitting in the middle of the land covered by the realm is the Capital City called a bit unoriginally "Word City" which is full of inhabitants stable and transient.

Some years ago, in this varicolored place, resided two Words friends, taking advantage of the most
beautiful building of the city, surrounded by happiness, and every thing they need.

They were the word GOOD and the word IRENIC, they have found a similar trait in them, so they become friends and enjoyed their relationship.

One day IRENIC came back to her house, and she found in her mail a blue envelope with the City Hall seal that crushed her heart! In this mail the Major informed her that due to relevant regulations valid at the time she was to be evicting from the dwellings in beautiful places of the city and it was
imperative for her to leave the place carrying all her belongings and moved to the slums that surrounded the city.

IRENIC tried to tell GOOD of her predicament, but she found out that she was prevented to access to any way of communication and there was only the way to the slums opened to her. In a few moments she had become a pariah of the society. Without power to change her destiny, IRENIC was waning into oblivion, and she was not totally forgotten because there are some dictionaries that still list her. But it is just a question of time for her total vanishing.

When GOOD realized IRENIC could not be found in her house, she went to all the places where it was possible her friend could be, but when she could not find a trace of her, she decided to go to the City Hall to ask for the search of a lost word.

She was sent from office to office until a very formal civil agent informed her that since there was so few persons that used the word IRENIC in the normal language, and in the determination to keep downtown of Word City uncluttered, the law ordered that those word with no use were deported to the slums of the city to be forgotten, unless they were lucky enough to be brought back in use again.

GOOD tried to reason with the civil agent asking him to give her the new address of her friend, but we all know what a civil agent is, he was very 'helpful' but could not give GOOD any 'help' since the law enforced the erasure of all things belonging to those words destined to exile and loneliness. There was a coded number in the Main Computer that could be used only in case the word was retrieved from her expulsion.

Finding herself helpless to change this situation, she sat to think a way to help her sister and an idea came to her mind:

She would write a letter and put it in Internet, so everybody could read it. Maybe, just maybe, it could help.

This is the letter:

Dear users of internet in our language, I beg of you to make the effort of learning the greatest number of words you possibly can, and that you use them many, many times a day. This will help to relieve a very huge pain to our words that become forlorn expression without your help, and are condemned to oblivion in the most dire place of the world.

Since then, this note can be found everywhere in places of English speaking people, looking for supporter for this good cause to alleviate a painful and unnecessary exile.

Please, join us in this crusade.


The music is "Alone" written and  performed by Kenny G.


© 2013 Od Liam.

7 comments:

  1. That was supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!
    Irenic has definitely found its way into my vocabulary. Would not want a word as Irenic as Irenic, to be condemned to oblivion :)

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    1. That supercal... thing is one sample of the semi-forgotten words. After Van Dyke, and Andrews made an exit of the song it was relegated to children books and people with good memory. Surely it is living in the outskirts of Word City; not a slum, but not a good apartment, either.

      Thank you for adding your help to our crusade, I am sure we will rescue a lot of words from the slums!! :))

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  2. Poor Irenic! A 'person' with such a good deed shouldn't end up in a slum. Shall we say it in our daily prayer to bring it back to the place it deserves to be at - standing in the eyes of the world?

    The message in the letter is loud and clear.

    Very interesting post. Loved it! :)

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    Replies
    1. Sorry, I shouldn't say "it". It should be "she".

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    2. Absolutely! and no other word , either!

      We must pray for them, and use them as much as we can!

      Glad the message is loud and clear, we want it to be heard around the Universe. Just think in so many languages, and so, so many words!

      Thank you for your warm expresion!

      Yes, words represent our thoughts and we are what we think, also we are persons so, words are persons, too! :)

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  3. I'm in! I'm joining the crusade. I fired an opening shot by looking up the meaning of the word IRENIC. Though perhaps the metaphor may be a little inappropriate...
    Good to see you back on top form, as ever, Od Liam.

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    1. Thank you so much, RPD!

      We need all the help we can get!

      Maybe there will be no metaphoric relation, even if to be GOOD is to love PEACE, but that is besides de point.

      We love Words and we want them to be happy! :))

      Thank you for your warm word!!

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