James Lee Stanley

I just finished re reading Bob Dylan's Chronicles.   He has such a gift for putting words together and even tho some of it felt contrived I still enjoyed the wordplay.   As song writers, we must not only enjoy, but employ words in original and engaging ways.    My guitarist, singer/songwriter pal, Lance Wakely, who now lives in Europe, sent this to me and it delighted me so much I decided to share it with you:

This two-letter word in English has more meanings than any other two-letter word, and the word?  'UP.' 

It is listed in the dictionary as an [adv], [prep], [adj], [n] or [v].

 It's easy to understand UP, meaning toward the sky or at the top of the list, but when we awaken in the morning, why do we wake UP?

 At a meeting, why does a topic come UP?  Why do we speak UP, and why are the officers UPfor election and why is it UP to the secretary to write UP a report?  We call UP our friends, brighten UP a room, polish UP the silver, warmUP the leftovers and clean UP the kitchen.  We lock UP the house and fix UP the old car. 

 

At other times, this little word has real special meaning.  People stir UP trouble, line UP for tickets, work UP an appetite, and think UPexcuses.

To be dressed is one thing but to be dressed UPis special. 

And this UP is confusing:  A drain must be opened UP because it is stopped UP.

We open UP a store in the morning but we close it UP at night.  We seem to be pretty mixed UP about UP!

To be knowledgeable about the proper uses ofUP, look UP the word UP in the dictionary.  In a desk-sized dictionary, it takes UP almost 1/4 of the page and can add UP to about thirty definitions. 

If you are UP to it, you might try building UP a list of the many ways UP is used.  It will take UPa lot of your time, but if you don't give UP, you may wind UP with a hundred or more. 
When it threatens to rain, we say it is cloudingUP.  When the sun comes out, we say it is clearing UP.  When it rains, it soaks UP the earth.  When it does not rain for awhile, things dry UP.  One could go on and on, but I'll wrap itUP, for now . . . my time is UP!
 
Oh . . . one more thing:  What is the first thing you do in the morning and the last thing you do at night?

 U

P!