There’s a reason that sayings become cliché. It’s because they’re often true and usually the cliché expresses the thought or idea in the best possible way.
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I realized this the other day while chatting with my friend
Barb in the comment section of
Road Trips R Us. We’ve traveled almost a gazillion miles of road in the last 12 months (only a slight exaggeration but I’m too lazy and scared to do the math) and regardless of the trip and where we went my favorite road was ALWAYS the road home. By the time we got off the interstate, drove through the small town between us and the interstate, left the state highway behind and got onto our small, single lane road, I was rejoicing to be home.
Because there's no place like home.
There have been times I’ve said something to a friend and felt trite for saying it because it was SO cliché, but it was true and the cliché expressed it so well. The trouble is, too often we hear the cliché but neglect to stop and hear the truth of it. It zips in one ear and out the other (see, there’s one!) without registering. It’s camouflaged in familiarity.
So tell me, what can we do about this?
Is it true that we must kill all the clichés? Are they so overused that there’s no hope for them, even those that say it best?
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Its so true. Sometimes there's nothing like a well worn phrase to say exactly what we're feeling! Know you were thinking this last night. :)
ReplyDelete=] You know me too well, JoDear!! Often they do say it best.
DeleteNothing wrong with cliches! I love it when people mix them up. When we were out of town once we met a woman who grew up not far from our home. She said, "It's a short world, isn't it?" I said, "Sure is, but it's pretty wide." She looked confused. I get that a lot.
ReplyDeleteLoL, Tom, I get it!! One of the fun things about NCIS is how Ziva mixes the cliches and sayings. Cracks me up all the time. =] They add a great touch of humor to writing. =] (and you are soooo good at that!! I always love visiting your site!)
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