Textese

We are living in the age of texting as a principle means of communication. Although I do not have an iPhone, I do have an iPad and, yes, I text. Tending to be the talker that I am, I find it expedient at times to text a brief message rather than phone and run the risk of an extended and unnecessary conversation. But nowadays, for convenience’ sake, many if not most resort to the use of acronyms instead of spelling out the words when they text. Examples of this are FYI (for your information), IMO (in my opinion), BTW (by the way), BZ (busy), L8 (late), 4 (for), U (you), R (are), 6Y (sexy), OMG (Oh my God), BIF (before I forget), and on the list goes. I have had people text me in acronyms that I have had to inquire about what they meant as I am not into a lot of that kind of communication. This type of language, if it is even proper to call it a language, is called Textese.

Well, a poor brother in my congregation caught it today. I had extended a kindness to him in a text. He texted back his appreciation by simply typing TY, which means Thank You. This did not sit well with me at all. Perhaps I am thin-skinned. Perhaps I am a weaker brother who would not be offended by this were I stronger. If that is your opinion of me, then pray for me. But hear me out before you finalize that judgment. I shot a text back to the brother and said: “What is this TY crap!!! Don’t tell me you are capitulating to the dumbing down of Textese.” There was an element of levity in the response, but I was also serious. In fact, after I dashed off that reply I discovered I was really more serious than I think I at first realized. He had struck a nerve. The brother obviously detected the element of levity – I am glad he did – because he replied with a humourous comment. I then went on to explain why I did not like his use of Textese. Now in this brother’s defense, I know he meant no harm and I told him so. It is just that to express thanks with TY smacks to me of hurriedness and/or laziness. It does not strike me as much of an expression of gratitude. If you do not appreciate something I do enough to type out the words thank you, then please do not even bother expressing your appreciation. And I mean that in earnestness! I further clarified to the brother my reasons for not liking the Textese. This dear brother responded this way: “Agree. And THANK YOU for that admonition.” Notice that he not only typed out the words thank you, but he put them all in caps. People who respond to admonitions like that make my day! God bless that brother!

This exchange set me to thinking about this whole thing of Textese. As I meditated on it, I became more and more outraged. So here I am venting my spleen. And if this is raising your defenses, then please think this through with me. Imagine this scenario. You text me of a blessing. It might read something like this: “The doctor says it is not cancerous.” “I got the job.” “They accepted our offer on the house.” Now how would it strike you if I replied with this: “TG” for “Thank God”? Would you pick up from that my relief and excitement over your blessing? Does TG do justice as an expression of praise to God?

In the book The Digital Invasion, the authors Drs. Archibald D. Hart and Sylvia Hart Frejd had this to say about Textese:

“We are already abbreviating deep emotional terms in our texting, to the extent that they no longer communicate our deeper feelings. This could be detrimental to healthy attachment and relationship building. As an example, our texting uses digital acronyms, saying things like LOL (laughing out loud), IMY (I miss you) and WYWH (wish you were here). Sorry, but we just don’t get the same emotional response from such abbreviations as we do when someone says them face-to-face. It feels like the sender doesn’t have the time, or courage, to speak the real words of deep feelings. This stunts emotional and social development.”

I couldn’t agree more. That was just the way that TY made me feel.

Our beloved apostle Paul would close out all of his epistles with expressions like this: “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.” (2Thessalonians 3:18) or “Grace be with you. Amen.” (Colossians 4:18). Can you imagine the beloved apostle closing out his missives with GBWY (grace be with you)? Or imagine him ending his epistles with A to save time writing out “Amen”? Or imagine the apostle John closing out his third epistle with PBTT (peace be to thee)? You are probably chuckling at the very suggestion as it is so utterly ridiculous. Come on, people! Wake up! Do you get where I am going? These blessed apostles wrote out these expressions of goodwill spelling out the words fully on paper with ink by hand. And all of that under the inspiration of the Spirit of God! Would to God there were more of that type of communication today! I will go to my grave with the conviction that there is no substitute for handwritten communication.

When I speak of “the dumbing down of Textese,” I mean what I say. It is a fact that languages degenerate with the passage of time. This is certainly the case with our English language. Just listen to people talk. And I don’t just mean high school dropouts. I mean people with college degrees, even advanced degrees. This is about what you will hear: “I mean it is like really sad the way people like talk nowadays and stuff. It is like amaaaazing. Ya know what I’m sayin? It’s like people are really like dumb. Know what I mean? It’s like seriously? Dude?” You think I’m exaggerating? If I am, it is not by much! Let me challenge each of my readers to start paying attention to how often you use the word like in your speech. And just how much do you think Textese is going to help our young people to know how to write out words in complete sentences with correct spelling, to say nothing of correct grammar? I fear we will see a generation that will use FYI (for your information) so much that they will not even know how to spell information.

Now I am 66 years old. I come from the old school where we learned to spell out words and compose complete sentences on paper with pencils and pens. Because I have those skills in place, as you can see from reading this blog, I could probably get by with Textese so long as I keep my language skills in practice. But what about the younger generation that are spending hours upon hours on their digital devices communicating in Textese? As I was expressing my concerns about Textese to the brother mentioned above, I wrote this: “But I know you meant no harm. However, I do think that Textese is a dumbing down process that I want to stand against. Think of the impact of this on our grandchildren. We have an example to set. Convenient is not always the best way.”

Convenience is the lure of this digital technology. We get so drawn in by the convenience that we overlook what we are sacrificing to have it. Everything but everything, convenience included, comes at a cost. But are you in such a rush that you never stop to consider what that cost might be? Or are you blinded to that cost by the convenience? Yes, it may be more convenient to just look something up on Google on my iPad. But I judge it best at times to lift my lazy behind out of my chair, walk over to a shelf, take down a book, and look it up. There is just something so rewarding about doing it that way. You might consider trying it sometime. Blessed be God that I am a disciple of the One Who did not choose the path of convenience, but rather went through the horrible inconvenience of the cross for the honour of His Father and the salvation of my soul. I speak of our blessed Lord Jesus Christ. Yes, I said the Lord Jesus Christ, not the LJC!!! Said He in the garden as He entered into His sorrows:

Matthew 26:53  Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?

54  But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?

Where would we be if he had chosen convenience over the cross?

I am a polyglot. I have studied several different languages in my lifetime. Textese is one language I do not care to master. I was only able to list as many examples of Textese as I did because I looked them up in a book. In fact, I do not think that Textese even deserves to be called a language. It would better be called the demise of a language.

Now I do not want to swing to an opposite extreme. Abbreviations have long had their place in our language. And it would not be fair to make a brother an offender for an acronym. I have even responded with an LOL when someone has sent me a joke. I do not think a joke warrants the kind of reply that an expression of gratitude warrants. But I am sure the recipient probably feels better for having sent it to me if I reply with “hardy har har,” as I have often done. However, Textese is abbreviations on steroids. The English language is the language our God chose in which to translate His word by inspiration for these last days. Should our beautiful and majestic English language be sacrificed on the altar of Textese? Should the language of Chaucer, Shakespeare, and the King James Bible be chopped to bits with abbreviations? Is it not worth the time to write it out with complete spelling of its words in complete sentences? I ask again, is it not worth the time? Are we in that much of a hurry? Have we become that lazy?

Consider that if your text is not important enough to use complete spelling of its words, it might not be important enough to even send it. Why not save your fingers and your time? I fear we waste far too much time texting anyway.

And while I am on this texting thing, I might as well dump it all. We have never had more telephones accessible to us than we do now. Yet try to get someone to answer the phone. If you don’t text with them, you don’t communicate with them by phone. I feel sorry for parents who seldom ever receive a visit or a phone call from their grown children. They have to settle for quick little texts much of which is in Textese. Is this the way to show your parents what they mean to you? When our God described His communication with Moses He put it this way:

Numbers 12:8  With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the LORD shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?

In Deuteronomy 34:10 the Lord said he knew Moses “face to face.” Let your parents behold your face by paying them a visit. Or at least let them see you on Facetime or Skype. And how about just phoning them and speaking with them mouth to mouth? Let them hear your voice. While texting can be an expedient way to communicate at times, it is no substitute for face to face, and voice to voice.

If I sound angry in this missive, I am! I am jealous for my beautiful mother tongue as I watch it going up in digital flames. I feel like Elihu when he was angry at the exchanges between Job and his three friends. Elihu finally had enough. Job 32-37 is Elihu venting his spleen. Said he:

Job 32:20  I will speak, that I may be refreshed: I will open my lips and answer.

You see, sometimes it just helps to get something off your chest. It refreshes you. Well, there you have it. Whew! I feel so much better now! It’s off of me and now it’s on you.

2 Timothy 2:7  Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.