I found a quote a few weeks ago and it has quickly become one of my all-time favorite quotes because it so beautifully and succinctly conveys the power of words. This is the quote:
“The destiny of the world is determined less by the battles that are lost and won, than by the stories it loves and believe in.” – Harold Goddard
Wow! Simply breathtaking when you really stop and think about it. Indeed it is the very stories that we love and believe in that take people to war in the first place. The power of words simply can not be disputed. They are the things that give shape to our thoughts, our imaginations, our fears and desires – to everything we think, believe, dream and hope!
So, it is on this day that I would like to give a shout-out to one of my favorite word-crafters and writers…
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, J.R.R. Tolkien! Yes, that’s right, today is his birthday. He was born 121 years ago in South Africa, not far from where my own ancestors come from.
I am grateful to the giant of a man who dared to share his fanciful thoughts, and through his fantasy, taught so many important and powerful lessons. I am grateful to him for daring to dream when the sophisticated university professors around him may have looked down on it. I’m glad he had such a good friend in C.S. Lewis. I can imagine them sitting at a table in heaven, not unlike the one they sat at for their frequent writing club, looking down on earth and marveling at the impact they have had. I’m sure neither one of them takes credit or puffed-up pride, but rather attributes their success to the simple power of speaking the truth in a way that resonates with people on a deep, personal and powerful level – through stories.
So, if you haven’t yet picked up some of J.R.R.’s writings, I strongly recommend you do. By today’s standards his writing can be long, boring, and somewhat distracted in it’s lengthy descriptions, but it is obvious (if today’s pop-culture is any indication) that despite these differences, his words and works still hold sway over the hearts of men many decades after he wrote them.
Thank you, Mr. Tolkien. We are still listening.
Phillip Chipping // Founder
knowonder! publishing
