Talk - 31 Days of Five Minute Free Writes

I had no idea the act of talking could be so complicated. I never knew there are so many moving pieces and parts of our brains, mouths, and muscles that all come into play for the very act of offering our voice.

Forming sounds, vowels and consonants, stringing words together in sentences; it comes so naturally for many. Yet, the sheer fact that we all talk stands to me as nothing short of a miracle.

Isaac, our 14 month old, keeps adding words to his repertoire almost daily. I write this not as a way to brag about his verbal skills but in awe of the sheer fact that he is talking. He points to his water bottle and says, “waa waa.” He wants to hold the keys in my hand as we get in and out of the car and says, “me.” He holds a blue bowl in his hands and says, “blue.” His sister wants to watch a DVD and she’s cheering, “DD,” to which he repeats her. He walks into the kitchen and grabs a banana, “nana.” His daddy comes forward to lead church each week and he’s yelling, “daddy!” He greets us with “hi” and “bye-bye.”

With each word he utters tears of joy flood my eyes. The words are coming to him; almost effortlessly. All the mechanics and science behind talking doesn’t need to be explained or analyzed; Isaac simply talks.

Yet I know it’s not that simple.

Charlotte, his almost 4-year-old sister has worked for almost every sound and word she speaks. They haven't come on their own. They haven’t been easy. The tears I’ve shed for her have been born of frustration and worry. She’s worked with therapists weekly on shaping her mouth, strengthening her muscles, and repeating sounds. We’ve worked with her day in and day out repeating words and phrases. We’ve corrected her words over and over. We’ve gone through flash cards and sheets to encourage speech. We’ve cheered when after months of saying the word for her she finally says it on her own. We see the hours of work she’s put into the act of talking.

It’s a miracle.

Every word. Every sentence. Every voice.

Nothing short of miraculous.

**All month I'll be participating in 31 Days of Five Minute Free Writes. Each day I'll take some time (sometimes 5 minutes and sometimes a little more) to sit down and write. It's about the discipline of writing each day. It's about listening to the words from within. It's about letting creativity work in me. I'll share my writing at some point during the day on my blog. Thanks for reading.