Think about these three sentences please. My father, Tim is dead. My, Father Tim is dead. My father Tim is dead. Changing the pause between the words makes for three quite different scenarios from the speaker’s perspective. Not to mention Tim’s. Sometimes that pause needs to be stronger than just some well meaning punctuation.

I get to come to you today from a hospital bed. Ahh, the miracles of the ever shrinking electronics platform. I’m fine by the way. Just a scheduled tune-up. But because my body is the way (mostly reconstructed from spare parts) I’ve been here longer than anyone should expect. My daughter had been here every day until the one when she woke up doing a really good audition for an over the counter cough, cold and flu medicine. That day, she stayed home – to the rousing cheers of pent up germs everywhere.

One of my doctors noticed her absence and asked where adult child was. Oh, she’s home sick. It wasn’t until hours later that I realized how less a perplexing response I would have gotten had I instead said, “Oh, she  is at home and sick.

So whatever you do out there, to make yourself as clear as can be, keep your pause clean.

That’s what I thimk. How ’bout you?