words mean what I want them to mean

I was at a Chatham house event today run by two ex combatants, para-militaries from "both sides". I was frustrated as the event got embroiled in a discussion about language and the meaning of words and so, in my view,  we ended up not really any further on. Language was the barrier.

Today, the one who calls me Papa witnessed her little brother fall down and called out "Mummy, Z has dropped himself!"

It was grammatically incorrect but observationally accurate and captured the moment candidly.

We can use language to suit our own ends, to disempower, to demean, to discourage, to confuse and to create ambiguity. We can alternatively use the same 26 letters to empower, to build up, to encourage, to clarify and help  better understanding. The choice is ours.