the why

Last year when I first started recording pieces of our lives in this blog, I mentioned that I would explain the title.  I took some time last night to try to put into words the meaning of "Apples of Gold".

This comes from Proverbs 25:11.

As a teenager I became especially aware of the power of words.  The good, uplifting, wholesomeness of them.  Or the negativity and hurt.

I began collecting quotes and poems.  I would tape them up on my walls, use them as bookmarks, or write them on folders.  Looking back, what I was really collecting were the words and ideas that came together in these forms as new creations, ready to be explored and become a part of me.  Just simple ones really, but easy to remember. 

Through college and on into adulthood and motherhood, I am daily aware of the power words have on others and ourselves. 

As an example, I listened to two mothers disciplining children who were not getting along in two starkly different ways.  As a bystander, I observed the uplifting words used by one mother to build confidence and create the desire to be better, whereas the negative words used by the other mother seemed to create shame and a sense of hopelessness.  I am not judging either woman, both were affected by life's circumstances in vastly different ways.  I know that I am guilty of both ways of speaking.  But I also know that I am much more receptive of a sender's message when the words are those that instruct & build. 

One afternoon in an effort to read a book in the Bible that I hadn't before, I came across this passage:

"A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver."

Its message rang true to me as I was reminded of family and friends who have given me incredible treasures through the words they have used.  To me, this verse serves as a reminder to give the treasures that are my words.

I named our blog "Apples of Gold" as a reminder of the true treasures that can be our words and how we use them, leading to the experiences we treasure and desire to capture.