I had a conversation recently with my mom that has me thinking about us funny humans. We were talking about the statement, “On my way!” and I recognized how many different meanings these 3 little words actually has. Have you noticed this? Think about it for a second…what does this statement mean to you?
So I polled those around me-
For my mom, “On my way!” means she is pulling into my driveway. She is NOT on her way, in my opinion, she has arrived, making for lots of scrambling to get ready for her visit or to leave or whatever is on the agenda. I prefer a little more lead time than that!
For my sister, “On my way!” means she is her car about to leave. She is very organized and specific that way. The car is probably on, she is buckled in and just as she is about to put the car in reverse, she stops for a moment, pulls out her phone and considerately texts you that she is, in fact, on her way.
For my husband, “On my way!” means that he is walking out to his car about to leave and head to his desired destination. He is an enneagram 5 type, heady and concrete about such facts as this. When he says he is on his way he literally means he is moving toward you, there is no idle sitting in the car or putting dishes in the dishwasher as he is running out the door, he is emphatically on his way with NOTHING else on his mind in that very moment.
For me, well, I am way more creative than all of those above. “On my way!” does mean I’m on my way it’s just that that has nothing to do with my car and being in it or possibly even near it. It does mean moving toward it’s just not as intentional as my husband. I am always on my way to something – fluffing sofa cushions, putting on the last few strokes of mascara, feeding the cats, making a smoothie to take with me. My intention is to move toward the door but I get very distracted along the way. There’s always so much in front of me to do on the long walk toward the door. Mom’s life right?
Anyway, just a thought for you to ponder.
Our words don’t usually mean the same things AND this explains alot! This may be why tempers flare, feelings get hurt, friendships dissolve, you or your spouse sleeps on the sofa occasionally – the meanings of our words are not the same. Your context and connotation of a word or phrase may be very different from the experience of another!
So what does “On my way” mean to you!?
