Moments Where the Words Don't Reach

As someone going into a profession built mostly on words, I’ll be the first to tell you that I love the English language. One of my favorite things to do is dog-ear a book page with a breathtaking sentence and go back and read it over and over.

For all of the power, quirk and charm of language, there are some moments in life that words can’t describe. 

Since I was a young child, I’ve dreamed of visiting the Great Barrier Reef. I spent many moments in my childhood glued to the Discovery Channel watching everything I could about the lungs of our planet. When I learned how fast the reef was dying, I thought that I would never get the chance to see it. So, when I boarded a sleek white dive boat out of Cairns, Australia for a three-day dive trip, I still hadn’t come to terms with what I was about to see. 

When we approached the reef, I was overtaken by sheer awe. I couldn’t wrap my head around the enormity and vibrance of the reef. I had to walk off to one end of the boat and take it all in. It took me five minutes of reflection before I could rejoin the group and regain the ability to speak. 

Just last week, I was scrolling through a list of recent advertising campaigns. When I stumbled upon Ogilvy’s Today We Rise ad for Girl Up, a feeling of pride to be a woman washed over me. However, when I clicked on the Girl Up website, I was knocked speechless by what I saw. 

“There is no country in the world where women are equal.”

This was the phrase on the front page of the Girl Up website. The straightforward, candid wording of this sentence brought to light an issue that we often overlook or accept as the norm today. I sat quietly at my desk for a few minutes before I could formulate words to share.

When I got up and read this sentence out loud to one of my roommates she looked at me with a grim smile and silently nodded. It seems that in that moment words also eluded her.

The opening line to It’s Quiet Uptown, a song in the Broadway musical Hamilton, says: “There are moments that the words don’t reach. There is suffering too terrible to name.” While I agree that there is suffering too terrible to name, I also strongly believe that there is joy too incredible to name. 

Whether good or bad, I welcome these peculiar moments in my future. These no words type of moments are what makes life beautiful, complex and worth living. 

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