On how the way we choose to speak is a sign of… something. A follow-up to the article Talking for the Sake of it.

2.30 am and unable to sleep, dark thoughts start entering through the back door of my brain. It has a front door and a back one, my brain being a charming semi-detached. In more ways than one. The thoughts that enter through the back are generally because I’ve forgotten to lock the door and they sneak up on me and catch me unawares. Anyway, I’m reflecting on how a life can change in an instant. A piece of unexpected bad news from a doctor, from an employer, from a lover, from a family member or a friend. How that news can knock you for six, even if you were on Cloud Nine 30 seconds before. And how, as a consequence, suddenly everything is bleak. Suddenly all the tiny problems that seemed manageable plus the accumulation of events leave you helpless and desperate. Being susceptible to these emotional roller-coasters on the fortunately few occasions that something has happened to me to bring my world tumbling down, the mere thoughts in my head begin to depress me. Damned back door.

So I get up and start to write, secretly thankful that not everything is hunky dory, otherwise there’d be no motivation to compose anything at all. And as I look back on this mish-mash of ideas, I giggle to myself. (It would freak out the cat if I did so aloud). What an inane bunch of cobblers I’ve just put down in words with more clichés than you could shake a stick at. But I’m up now, so I’m thinking, hey, keep writing, but this time along the lines of clichés. So let’s get this show on the road.

What can I bring to the table? (I detest that one.) The problem I see with clichés is that they exist because they have a basis in truth, reality and in experience, and yet have become so hackneyed that they cease to have any real meaning, and exist solely to get out of tight spots. In fact they are conversation stoppers, because the reaction of the listeners tends to be either how true, from those wishing to make friends, or a silent ironic facial expression from those who believe themselves to be above such un-thought-out statements. Either way, it leaves you nowhere to go. But why can’t we use clichés if they actually DO express what we want to say? If you have ever been forced onto the emotional roller-coaster you’ll realise that it’s actually not a bad analogy. However, you’re forever seen as shallow if all you can do is come out with platitudes that everyone recognises, be they or not relevant to the situation.

Personally, I blame classic love songs. Wise men say, Only fools rush in, But I can’t help falling in love with you. Use your head woman! He’s saying he’s a fool. He just said it. Just because he sang it doesn’t mean it’s romantic. It’s a warning. Heck, wise men say it. And there are plenty more fish in the sea so that’s by the by. As someone who enjoys writing, I want to avoid like the plague the use of done-to-death expressions. And though I frequently fall into the trap, it can be quite fun to use them with a slight change… For example I’ll stop using clichés when bananas fly. After all, it is what it is, isn’t it?

So, for all our posturing, wanting to be heard, and often vapidness, I remind you of Shakespeare’s Macbeth:

Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player

That struts and frets his hour upon the stage

And then is heard no more: it is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,

Signifying nothing.

Can’t say it better than that.

I’d better go to bed. Tomorrow is another day (hopefully) and I want to be bright and breezy in the morning. I’ll just lock my brain’s back door first. Better safe than sleepy.

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Episode 30: Interview: Changing Times