∆En aÓrchØv h™n oJ lo/goß, kai« oJ lo/goß h™n pro\ß to\n qeo/n, kai« qeo\ß h™n oJ lo/goß.
That's how the Gospel of John begins: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." I cannot read these words, but that they make me pause in absolute wonder. As a lover of words it somehow comforts me and gives me great pleasure to know that the absolute first thing "in the beginning" was the utterance of God, and through this utterance, the rest of existence finds it's meaning.
Of course, here the gospel writer is talking about the person of the trinity that humanity will eventually come to know as Jesus, but I like to think that there is also some dimension of awe and reverence associated with the spoken word.
Long before there were blogs, note tablets, chalkboards, papyri, or even stone tablets and chisels, the spoken word was the sole source of intelligible communication giving meaning and purpose to life. These utterances, these narratives of the successes and failures, the genealogies and creation mythologies, these stories constructed of nouns and adjectives, participles and the occasional dangling modifier, are near the very root of who we are as humans.
It's hard to fully appreciate words and language until you no longer have them. For the past two months, after she was unable to speak any longer, Emily and I have had to construct ad hoc methods of communication. This confused methodology of sign and semaphore served its purpose, but let me tell you that it was a far cry from hearing her voice.
Today, for the first time in two months, I did just that - I heard her speak.
Now that she is officially off of the ventilator she has a different kind of tracheostomy, and with a special valve called a Passey-Muir valve, she has regained the capacity to speak. She has been trying to use this valve for several days with some raspy difficulty, and so I must say that it came as a complete surprise today to walk into her room and hear her speaking to me as clear as day. It did my heart good to hear that voice again, and I dare say that I'm looking forward to hearing much more of it tomorrow!
