The Worth of a Thousand Words

     You know what one of my biggest pet peeves is?  The phrase "A picture is worth a thousand words."  I get it, you want to give recognition to the beauty of a picture, but don't degrade words in the process.
     "But Odessa, have you ever seen a beautiful picture before, such as a sunset or a field of flowers?  Can you even find the words to express it?"
     This is true.  There are some scenes of beauty that surpass even the most eloquent description, and it's difficult to fully formulate cohesive sentences to help express how beautiful the said picture is.  For example...

     Of course, I'm sure there is someone out there who could do these pictures at least a bit of justice with their words, but it's true: some pictures simply can't be expressed with words.
     But to say that, in general, pictures are worth a thousand words just isn't true.  For example, say you're reading a book, and you come across this line: "Even just looking at the forest gave off an air of the whole thing being alive.  The branches and trunks stood solid, gleaming with their chestnut colors in the light of the rising sun.  The leaves, with their healthy deep green, were tinged with gold as the morning sunlight was filtered through them to cast dancing shadows upon the earthy ground that was strewn with stray leaves and small fruits that hadn't clung to their branches long enough."
     Whether you think it's beautiful or not, do you need a picture to see that forest?  Does there need to be a picture for you to visualize this scene?  If so, then that's an entirely different issue.  Of course, it's highly unlikely you'll visualize the same forest that I did, but that doesn't matter.  That's the point.  You and I can see the same winter scene and sunset above.  Certainly they mean something different to each of us, but we both see the same picture.  With the words above, neither of us see the same thing.
     Also, pictures can only appeal to one of your five senses.  Can you take a picture of sounds (and not sound waves, jerk), or smells, or tastes, or textures?
     What if I were to say, "Her voice, though soft, carried smoothly to all within its reach, as clear and lovely as a silver bell.  The gentle music of her voice was enough to make even the deafest man perk up."  You can show me a picture of the girl talking/singing, and the people lifting their heads, but you can't take a picture of her voice.
     Or what if I were to say, "The stink of the dungeon made him cringe in disgust.  The musty odor of mold, the acrid smell of unwashed bodies, and the distinctive stink of rats all combined together in an unpleasant jumble, nearly making him vomit up the small lunch he'd eaten earlier."
     Or, "The small berries burst in their mouths, their juicy middles permeating with a sweet taste and soothing flavor, calming the burning from the earlier meat."
     Or even, "The water flowed over my fingertips, chilling them.  It was smooth and quick, and the feeling of it running through my fingertips was like liquid silk flowing as a stream."
     You see?  Just because there are pictures words can't describe doesn't mean that words have no ability to describe.  Words wield more power than we give them credit, and the people who use them are the ones who've truly mastered it--and they're the ones who take a little bit of offense when informed that a picture is worth one thousand of their words.
     In truth, a picture will never achieve the same effect that a thousand words will.  Not to degrade pictures at all, but a thousand words, when placed in such a way, can cause anyone to see something, or hear something, or feel something.  Pictures can only give you so much.
     I mean, isn't it usually a little disappointing when you go see a movie based on a book you love?  Characters and places you imagined as you read are so different on the screen.  And while sometimes you appreciate the fact that it's been brought to life and in front of your eyes, it often destroys what you first imagined it to be.  You very rarely remember those characters and places the way you did when you read the book.
     So really, pictures and words shouldn't even be compared.  Pictures appeal to the eyes, but words appeal more to the soul.  And both have their place in the world in helping us capture the beauty of each precious moment.
     A picture worth a thousand words is an extraordinary value indeed.
     I hope your day is as awesome as you.