Introspections
SHOWER ME W ITH
Your LOV E BY MEGH A N RYA N
Good is a word we use for everything. When someone asks, “How are you?” the typical response is, “Good, how are you?”
When something is described as good, it rarely gives the full explanation. Throughout our education, English and grammar students learn to use a thesaurus to avoid using good as a noun or an adjective. As a word, it’s too vague and too cliché. The same could be said for its antonym, bad; However, “bad” is rarely used to describe how someone is doing. It’s easier to say, “Not good,” or, “Things have been better.” Bad becomes a bad word to use.
What does “good” really say, though?
Good is used far too flippantly. When something is truly good, there is weight to it, but its value has diminished because the word isn’t being used in its proper context.
Add high volume, an enthusiastic tone, and a big smile, and “good” can translate to something exciting or positive. With a shoulder shrug, a little nod, and a somber tone it can mean things are less than great, but they aren’t bad. Good could mean anything or nothing at any given time.
The world craves good and wants to avoid bad. Look around, and you see people desperately longing for goodness. Turn on the news, and you’ll see one bad thing after another, from school shootings to arguments over political opinions. But scroll through social media, and there are perfectly curated highlight reels showing “the good life.” When people receive bad news or simply have a bad day, they tend to search for something good to fix it, even if it’s just looking through a virtual window at something good.
128 | NO V E MBE R 2018
