The N- Word

It never ceases to amaze me just how much power one word can hold. The N-word, as it's now politically correct to call it, is one word that can be a term of endearment for some and prelude to a fight for others. The older I get, the more it is getting to be just a word. Perhaps it's because I recognize that it only holds power because we choose to give our power over to it and to the users of it.

I have this ongoing joke with my colleagues that I don't mind being called the word. I've been called it may times before, and I will probably be called it many, many more times before I leave this world. I refuse to give any person that much power over my emotions. Instead, I respond in a much more sinister fashion: I sear my black image right into their brains! If you really want to piss a racist off, just do what I've been known to do on occasion: follow their butts around and relentlessly share with them the history of the word. Draw it all out so that it takes at least ten minutes. When they move away, you move with them, but don't stop talking. I do it so sweetly that, to the casual observer, it looks as if I'm just a nice lady taking the time to drop some knowledge on some poorly educated schmuck. Will it change a racist's views? Probably not; but that's not the point in the first place. It pisses them off and transfers that negative energy back onto them. The next time they make a decision to call someone by the word, they will be reminded of you and the unpleasant experience they had when they said it to you. They still may say it, but you will surely be one n- word that they won't soon forget. But that's just me and the way I think. Of course, this may not work for everyone. Some racists may decide to get mad that the negative energy has been transferred and want to engage in a little fisticuffs. In that case, handle your business. Then, drop the knowledge on them while you have them in a headlock. Just before you either walk away or release them from a headlock, you should probably give them the proverbial gut punch by saying, "I know you didn't want to hear all of this, but I want to make sure that the next time you decide to use big words, you will at least know the whole meaning behind one of them and won't sound like such an ignorant ass!" Then smile and wish them a good day.