Lately I seem to be reading a lot of stories about words.  Words are incredibly powerful.  They have the ability to inflict pain and heartache but they also have the ability to comfort and soothe. The Word Collector by Peter H. Reynolds spoke to me.  As an avid reader and writer, words play a vital role in my life.  

In The Word Collector, Jerome collects words: big ones, small ones, long ones, and short ones.  He collects words he sees, words he reads, and words he hears.  He writes them all down to save them.  He combines them into interesting combinations and uses them to write poems and songs.  He realizes the power of the words he has collected.  One day he takes his words and releases them into a breezy day so all the children of the valley can collect than and it makes his so happy; he is at a loss for words.

The Word Collector carries a very important message about learning and the necessity of learning words.  Words can convey our thoughts, feelings, and dreams.  The more words we know and understand the more we can share with the world.  How can we all be word collectors and more importantly, how can we teach others to be word collectors?  It starts with exposure; talking to each other, reading to each other, observing the words that are all around.  With our words we can be agents of change and work to making our world a better and safer place to live.