Crying Awesome Wolf!

Have you noticed that we seem to be a people in search of a good superlative? Hey, I'm the last one to be critical of any one's speech habits and word choices. I'm as guilty as the next guy when it comes to the over use of superlatives - and yes, cliches. I've got a boat load of 'em! It just seems to me that if we use superlatives to describe everything from our morning bagel to our late night bed, where do you go from there? It's like the boy who cried wolf, except we are crying "stupendous" and no one cares. If your hot chocolate is awesome and your new shirt is incredible, what can you say about a sunset or a star-filled night? If everything is super, where do you go next? Super-Duper? We've been forced to create new words or prefixes just because we need to elevate something beyond rad, bad, or cosmic. Now everything can be mega-something, or monster-that, or uber-meister-crack-a-lackin'-A+, if you can think that fast.

And if the nice guy who collects toys for foster children is a hero, what do you call the soldier who covers a grenade with his body to save the lives of his fellow soldiers?

I'm not complaining, just wondering. Ask me how my last hunt was, and I'm more than likely going to say, "It was awesome." I just wonder, what ever happened to good? Why isn't good - good anymore? Isn't being a good person, doing good things for the good of mankind a pretty good superlative? What's wrong with "You did a good job," or "That was a really good piece of pie"? "Really" sort of makes it a mega-superlative doesn't it? It gets boosted even higher with the addition of "very".

I can't help but remember when someone called Jesus "Good Teacher" and he told them, in essence, that was such a high superlative that is should only be applied to God. Maybe that's why I hear so many people say, "Good God." Wait! I don't think that's a superlative.

Just something to think about. Have a great day, or good day, or an awesome day. Choose your superlative.