This is an article that my daughter Carol Ann wrote, which i thought you would enjoy reading and pondering.

When a person hears someone say ”you’ll come through this with flying colors’, the image of success and accomplishment comes to mind. Unfortunately these things are not in most people’s thoughts; most people cannot picture themselves successful or accomplished. Which causes the metaphor” you will come through this with flying colors”, be something that is foreign to most people. One might say that this metaphor has nothing to do with real life, although authors Lakoff and Johnson would disagree. According to their book ” Metaphors We Live By”, metaphors are something that is used in everyday life and it not just part of language; it is a key ingredient to the thoughts and actions of people.  This being said there has to be reason why most people cannot believe in this metaphor, something has caused this to happen.

If a person were to turn the news on today, it would be very hard to find something positive being talked about. Most things are negative and gloomy. These negative images are all over the place, a person can not go anywhere with out hearing some sort of bad news or discouragement.  As a result of the conditions in the world today it is hard for people to see things in a positive light. Individuals do not envision themselves coming through anything with flying colors; instead they see failure. This fact causes huge discouragement in the world we live in. There are three main reasons that the world we live in has trouble believing that he or she can pass things with flying colors.

The first is our economy, which is getting worse and worse as time goes on. The news reports that it is getting better; yet people are scared and worried about what is to come. Thus the metaphor of coming through something with flying colors is a concept that most people do not even comprehend. The way most people see it is that it’s going to get worse before it ever gets better. Thus finding the positive is very difficult.

The second item that causes the metaphor to not be believable is the huge amount of job loss in the world. In September of 2011 U.S. Department of Labor reported that 14 million people are currently un employed. (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). This fact alone can create a huge impact on an individual. It would make it very hard for a person to see himself or herself coming through that impact of a job loss with flying colors. A Job loss does not only affect the individual that loss his or her job; it affects everyone around them. Therefore the idea of coming through the event with flying colors does not only seem far fetched to the individual that lost his or her job, it is to his or her family as well. It becomes a domino affect to everyone close to the situation.

The third and final example that I wish to show is the increase in the cost of living. This combined with the previous mentioned examples are a huge stress for many people. Which again causes our metaphor to be non-existent in his or her life. The things that used to cost one thing have doubled even tripled recently. A good example of this is gas prices, which just keep going up instead of going down. Price increases combined with job loss and lack of raises can cause a lot of stress and discouragement in individuals.

As shown there are reasons why the metaphor ”you’ll come through this with flying colors”, is so hard for people to believe. When looking through the lens of life negativity is much easier to see then the positive things of life. In order to make this metaphor live again and be a part of everyday life like metaphors were designed to be, a person has to change the lens of life they look through. The negative one has to be tossed aside and the positive lens have to be put on. To accomplish this the first thing a person has to do is find the positive in things. Even when the economy is failing, jobs are being lost, and prices are increasing, a person has to find a little positive in everything. This will bring our metaphor to reality, and make it easier to grasp.

Second a person has to take one step at a time, and not become overwhelmed with everything that is going on around them. In essence he or she has to stop and smell the roses. Lastly he or she needs to be thankful for everything they do have. Even if the world is caving down around him or her, being thankful for what is left helps to bring out the positive.

In conclusion “ passing with flying colors” can be a metaphor that is lived out and used in more than just writing and language. The conditions of the world do not have to be a reason people feel discouraged and gloomy. It can be the very reason why people find the positive and begin to come through things with flying colors. All it takes is a little effort and belief. Even with all the bad things that happen in the world on a daily basis, good things still can happen, people just have to look for it.

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