fgazette.com Community news site for Union Parish Louisiana
With National Punctuation Day just a few days in the rear-view mirror, let’s pause to appreciate something we rely on daily but sometimes neglect: punctuation.
Yes, Sept. 24 was National Punctuation Day – a holiday you may not have circled on your calendar, but one that deserves recognition nonetheless.
Without punctuation, our written words would descend into chaos. Imagine trying to read a sentence without a single period, comma or question mark. It would be like driving through a town with no traffic signals. Punctuation gives structure to our sentences, helping us navigate through ideas, emotions and meaning. It’s the unsung hero of written communication, a system of tiny symbols that makes the difference between confusion and clarity.
But in our modern world of texting, social media and rapid-fire communication, punctuation is starting to go by the wayside. We’ve all seen it. A message pops up on our phones, completely devoid of commas, periods or any sign of grammatical structure: “hey how r u hope u had a good day” becomes the norm.
And while shorthand messaging has its place, especially when you’re trying to text and walk at the same time, something is lost in the process. Nuance, tone and even intent can be misinterpreted without those little markers that tell us when to pause or where a thought ends.
Take the humble comma, for example. This tiny mark can change everything. Consider the difference between “Let’s eat, Grandma!” and “Let’s eat Grandma!” – a sentence in which a missing comma turns an innocent invitation into something far more sinister. The comma helps us pause, reflect and understand how different elements of a sentence relate to each other. Yet, in the rush of instant messaging, the comma often gets left behind.
The period, too, is losing ground in the digital world. Some people say ending a text with a period makes the message seem cold or passive-aggressive – something I just learned. So, unfortunately, what was once a simple full stop is now viewed as a way to end conversations abruptly. It’s strange to think that one of punctuation’s most foundational elements is now considered optional in certain contexts.
Instead of periods, exclamation marks are often preferred these days and have taken over as the mark of choice for enthusiasm – and often too much enthusiasm!!!!
Or what about the hyphen or lack thereof? Contrast these two ideas: “a man eating chicken” vs. “a man-eating chicken.”
Of course, punctuation isn’t just about the basics. The semicolon, often misunderstood and underused, is the punctuation mark of subtlety. It connects related ideas, giving them equal weight in a sentence while hinting at a deeper connection between them. In texting? Almost non-existent.
National Punctuation Day isn’t just about celebrating the marks themselves, though; it’s about recognizing the role punctuation plays in how we express ourselves. Every mark, from the dash to the apostrophe, serves a purpose in our written language. They help us convey tone, emphasis and intention. Without punctuation, even the most eloquent prose would be a garbled mess, and our most heartfelt messages would fall flat.
So, take a moment to appreciate the tiny dots, squiggles and slashes that guide us through our written world – even in a world where we’re tempted to let them fade away. They may be small, but punctuation marks hold the power to shape our thoughts, clarify our meanings and, ultimately, connect us to each other through the written word. Even if you leave them out of your next text.
Meanwhile, let’s applaud the irony that one day after National Punctuation Day, Sept. 25 was named National One-Hit Wonder Day. Yep. So, let’s start celebrating “96 Tears” by ? and the Mysterians.
