The Ghosts That Live Inside Language

Some words are houses.
Some are doors.
Some are keys that open rooms we didn't know were locked.

But some words...

Some words are ghosts. They don't open anything. They just linger.

They echo in hallways of the mind, long after the conversation is over.

I think every language has abandoned buildings. Words that used to mean something sacred, and now mean something smaller. Or nothing at all.

I think this is why I love etymology. It's archaeology. We dig through ruins to remember what was once alive.

We listen for the ghosts.