Monday Morning Manna: Emoticons
I love new words, although I’m sometimes slow in learning them. I’m sure most of my younger friends have already started using the word “emoticon” but it is somewhat new to me. It is defined as “a pictorial representation of a facial expression that, in the absence of body language serves to draw a receiver’s attention to the tenor of a sender’s nominal non-verbal communication.” The word is a blend of the English words emotion and icon. The use of emoticons can be traced back to the 19th century, where they were used in casual and humorous writing. In 1963 the “smiley face”, a yellow button with two black dots representing eyes and an upturned thick curve representing a mouth was created by freelance artist Harvey Ball. This smiley presumably inspired many later emoticons, which now dot my e-mail and social media postings. While the word is relatively new in widespread usage, the idea is not. Job said, “I will forget my complaint, I will put off my sad face and wear a smile” (Job 9:27). Had emoticons been around back then, I’m sure Job would have added a smiley face to that statement. So, smile a few times today, even when you don’t say anything verbally.