Three little words

Sleepless in Stonefields. It is two or three a.m. and I’m wide awake, thinking about Russell Brand. Transformation best describes him, a man whose life turned around 180 degrees. He’s my go-to podcast in the wee small hours, though that harsh “Mockney”accent grates in the darkness.

The Under the Skin taster (I have to subscribe to hear the whole thing) is just enough to tempt me, to set the neurons of my sleep-addled brain firing. His guest - a woman whose name I will need to look up - reveals that our metabolism and heart rate is impacted not just by experiences, but by words. Language, that unique, precious and often underrated talent of humans, has the ability to influence our physiological state. She - I cannot find her name - assures me that even a text from across the globe can have significant impact, three little words enough to start the heart palpitating.

And then it stops, the podcast preview. I am left hanging. So I create my own, my texts of three little words. I keep it simple, after all, these are tiny stories. My formula is "I (word) you." Can’t be that many alternatives, right?

So let’s go:

I love you.
I miss you.
I need you.

Hey, a good start, and the emotion starts to rise. Nice words for loved up couples, friends across the ditch. Then we move to relationships gone bad:

I hate you.
I despise you.
I resent you.

Parents, mentors, public figures, a response on Twitter or Insta, a smiley face or a praying hands the accompanying emoji:

I admire you.
I envy you.
I trust you.

Teachers, police officers, long-lost childhood friends:

I recognise you.
I saved you.
I taught you.

Psychologists, confidantes, and coaches:

I remember you.
I hear you.
I believe you.

Or poets, flush with passion …

I fancy you.
I want you.
I adore you.



Three little words, rich with emotion, promise and meaning, easing the mind or throwing us into torment. 

Which three words will you choose today?



 

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