Don't pay more than the worth of a word.

     Literature can move the heart and inflame the mind. Sentences have driven men to reach for a new life or destroy a government. Writers the world over have searched for the phrase to perfectly express a thought. Each word in the perfect sentence is a jewel linked to the next, a shining gem-like expression in the necklace of an idea. The perfect sentence is beyond value.
     Isn't it amazing that in the search for the perfect sentence it is possible to pay more than the worth of the sentiment, and by doing so, devalue it? As authors cast about for "the" way to express themselves, they often muddy the water with their own brilliance. To use a saying, or colloquialism to make the point, "Why use a five dollar word when a fifty cent word will do?"
     Yvonne Perry, in an article using the same saying suggests that a speech tailored to the audience will be enjoyed more completely than one using expressions containing "fifty dollar words". Could it be that while aiming for the highest moral peak, the best way to get there is with words that touch the greatest number of moral men? Take Mahatma Ghandi's expression for example: "Be the change you wish to see in the world". It would be a challenge to find some part of that anyone does not understand. It is, however, a world changing sentiment, thought, idea, meme, concept, and belief.
     Their are at least 600,000 words in the English language according to the Oxford English Dictionary. According to Michael Quinion, of World Wide Words, the average college graduate has a vocabulary of between 20,000-25,000 words. Although this is a highly variable and problematic statement, according to Mr. Quinion, if he is even close, there are many thousands of words left out.
     Reading lately, the ideas of fellow wordsmiths put to paper or blog, wading comes to mind. The need for mental boots to wade through lovely, fifty dollar, words in the hopes of finding a fifty dollar idea is sometimes exhausting. Most ideas are expressed best that are expressed simplest. That's not mine but it's true. There is always the phrase that cannot tell the story completely without the.... one.... perfect... word, possibly a fifty or hundred dollar one.
     Save your money for that time, that phrase, that world changing, mind blowing idea. The rest of the time, do the world, and yourself, a favor. Remember, a gem I don't recognize is only a rock. The perfect sentence is accessible to all the men you wish to reach.