IDIOMS, EUPHEMISMS, AND METAPHORS- OH MY!!!

(HOW USING POPULAR PHRASES CAN FIGURATIVELY GET YOU “HUNG OUT TO DRY”)

Last night a story appeared in my reading feed that was titled ‘Do Your Colleagues Use The Phrase “Low Hanging Fruit?” I have not read any articles lately where the comment section cultivated so many negative replies. They “came for her” “with a vengeance.” Apparently, the author provoked the ire of many, and the vitriol was palpable. The writer equated the phrase to a piece that was sung by Billie Holiday circa 1939, ‘Strange Fruit.’ The song essentially described a scene of the lynchings of Black folk that were a predominant occurrence before, during, and after it was written. It gives a mind's eye view of people hanging from trees as if they were a piece of fruit waiting to be plucked. Certainly, a macabre image, indeed.

One commenter wrote how he felt it was poorly written and that the reasoning was poorly thought out. Some of the responses were favorable, but I was taken aback by how a nerve was seemingly struck by this story; proving that even the mentioning of someone or something being racist evokes a “hot button” discussion. Whether, or not the story writer's interpretation was correct is not the premise of my writing. The ability of her story to make so many people uncomfortable to say the least, is.

Firstly, I will say that I'm sure that the majority of the authors on this platform are not professional writers. Most come to this medium( no pun intended) to express our thoughts, to air our opinions, or to shed light on a particular topic. Because we are not professionals in the field of writing in itself, does not mean that we should not be able to speak on a subject.

What I gathered from the author’s writing was that she felt the phrase “low hanging fruit” was yet another racist euphemism meant to further demean or antagonize Black people. Also, that it should be held to the same standard as any other racist or derogatory language. When I have heard the term spoken by someone, they were often saying that the person or thing was deficient, base, unable to live up to the standards that were prescribed to a task. One online dictionary defines it as ‘a person or thing that can be persuaded, won, or obtained with little effort’, not a challenging endeavor.

So, I can somewhat understand why some folks’ “feathers were ruffled.” Many said that she was “fanning the flames” of discord unnecessarily by her comparison. This did not seem to be the case from what I read, she seemed to genuinely be concerned that this was a covertly racist phrase that should be eliminated from our everyday vernacular.

Most of what we speak is not that of the collective but are our own musings, and our thoughts on a given subject. Yes, we do have to be careful about what we put out into the universe because words possess great power. The old childhood saying of “sticks and stones” has been proven to be grossly inaccurate. Words do hurt and the sting of mean -spirited, spiteful language can often last longer than the actual pain from a physical injury.

I love language in general. The spoken and written word bring wonder and delight to my soul. I wish that we as people could speak to and with each other more gently. Honestly, but gently. I wish we didn't feel the need to ascribe ill intent to every statement, and that we could allow a faux pas every now and then without actually needing to besmirch a persons’ character for giving an interpretation that we don’t agree with. Because, come on let’s “keep it real,” we know when someone is deliberately trying to ignite a negative firestorm by screaming “fire, in a movie theatre”. There are plenty of people in this world and especially this country, that commit these nefarious acts on a regular basis, and it's easy to recognize. The word “woke” is the latest in the controversial phrases to be debated on. But we’re going to save that one for another day.

I don’t know why, but oddly enough an old 1971 Coca Cola commercial came to mind when I was thinking of writing this piece. Yes, I was alive in 1971.

Paraphrased, some of the lyrics are, I’d like to buy the world a home and furnish it with love. Grow apple trees and honeybees and snow-white turtle doves. I’d like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony. Wow! Wouldn’t that be magnificent if we could be more harmonious? I can dream!

So, maybe the next time someone’s thoughts on a particular subject “rubs you the wrong way” take a contemplative second and try to imagine where they may be coming from. Don’t go directly to the thought that they are trying to start the next revolutionary war. Unfortunately, because of our makeup we are probably not going to agree on many things, but we also don’t need to “tear them/ each other to shreds” because of a difference of opinion.

Let’s open our minds and our hearts!