Periods. Question marks. Commas. When a story is archived as words, the pieces are connected with punctuation. These symbols mark the phrases, transitions, and highlights. Some sentences or paragraphs end in dot-dot-dot. Others conclude with a dramatic flourish of an exclamation mark. To acknowledge our lives as a set of stories means embracing life’s punctuation.
Note about the image: I took this picture during a 2012 visit to Yellowstone. We were able to time our walk through the park to catch this geyser erupting. An exciting, exclamation mark moment to our week-long trip.
Note about THIS image: While in Yellowstone, I mainly took pictures of the exclamation mark moments, except for this one, as we were traveling in an ellipsis phase between highlighted stops.
My Mysterious Mind
In the story of one’s life there are various types of punctuation. Some days end in a simple period, others in a question mark, wondering about what the day meant or what tomorrow will bring. A season of life might end with a colon: handing off the season to the next. There are weeks that include hyphens, as one week is connected to the one that follows. Sprinkled across the narrative are a few exclamation marks, emphasizing the exceptionally important times.
There is a peculiar form of punctuation I’m certain you have all seen and may have used; but only a few of you probably know what it is called. When a series of periods are strung together, ending a thought that trails off into the horizon, that set of periods is called an ellipsis. This dot-dot-dot can replace superfluous words within a phrase. An ellipsis can also signal something to be continued, such as when my oldest grandson and I do explorations, pretending to record our observations in an imaginary journal. He expects every entry to end with the phrase: “To be continued. Dot-dot-dot.”
Thinking about punctuation also brought to mind a comedy routine I saw as a teenager by a talented and funny Danish comedian. Victor Borge’s Phonetic Punctuation (with video link provided) was a hilarious way to tell a story, with every bit of punctuation marked with a sound, including a period (sound), an exclamation point (sound), and an ellipsis (sound). I can’t imitate his routine or the sounds he made to bring the punctuation to life; just watch the video.
If my professional life at my previous employer were a written narrative, it would have ended with an ellipsis. In fact, there were probably several phases of the final years interspersed with ellipses. Here’s a possible excerpt:
“For twenty years I had been part of an award-winning doctoral program. Then, in 2020, financial changes forced the decision to close the program. First, the recruiting and admission processes ended. Dot-dot-dot. Then the coursework stopped as the last cohort of students shifted into the dissertation portion of the program. Dot-dot-dot. When there were only a few students yet unfinished, I left the college of education, no longer having a clear role there. Dot-dot-dot. A year later, I retired and began work at another university. Dot-dot-dot.”
On Friday, March 14, 2025, I was honored at an award ceremony sponsored by the University of Missouri’s College of Education and Human Development. I had been chosen to receive the 2024 Lifetime Achievement Award. As I prepared for the drive north, I was overcome with sadness. Since the closure of the program my professional relationship with Mizzou had faded into a nearly silent ellipsis. After living in that ellipsis for many months, my relationship with my alma mater was recognized with a joyous exclamation point.
If your life included punctuation marks, what would best fit the current day, month, or season? Does an ellipsis align with some part of what is happening to you now? Or, perhaps, you care about someone who is experiencing a time of ellipsis. These quiet, dot-dot-dot times can be sad, but even that sorrow might be barely noticeable. How can we embrace the ellipsis times, while longing only for exclamation points?
Message of Mystery Acres
What kind of punctuation marks life in the forest? Each season is a gradual “to be continued” chapter handing off to the next. Daylight fades away as darkness gently arrives, only to dissipate when sunshine heralds the new day. Most moments are simple ellipses until the following moment, with a sliver of sadness weaving one into the next, but only a sliver.
Somehow, the forest knows life is typically one ellipsis after another. The exclamation marks are few and are not always celebrated. A storm came through recently; the strong winds cleared dead trees and branches in their path. Though no one was there to hear the trees fall, I’m certain the sound was an unsettling exclamation mark in the punctuation life of the forest.
The message of Mystery Acres is to be grateful for the normal ebb and flow of life’s ellipses. Exclamation marks will come from time to time, but the simple fading of one time into another is the beautiful, normal pattern of life. And, yes, these dot-dot-dot times can be sad, as one moment must leave for another to arrive.
Ancient Mystery’s Voice
“When our time there was complete, we continued on our way.” (See Acts 21:5)
The original versions of the Bible lacked punctuation. As these Hebrew and Greek writings were translated into other languages, punctuation was added. There are no exclamation marks in the original, ancient writings. And, even in modern translations, there are no ellipses. Not one.
The closest I could find to an ellipsis was in the travels of the early Christians, preserved in a book of the Bible called Acts. The full name of this book is “Acts of the Apostles.” There are many incredible stories captured here, worthy of exclamation marks, including miraculous healings. But in the 21st chapter, I found a phrase that feels like an ellipsis.
“When our time there was complete, we continued on our way.” Dot. Dot. Dot.
Luke, who wrote the book of Acts, incorporated exciting tales of the early Christians. He probably just left out the mundane, ellipsis, parts. He could have replaced the connective phrase I just referenced with an ellipsis. One task was done, so the apostles went on their way. In other words, Dot. Dot. Dot. Or, as Victor Borge would say (sound).
I’m glad he didn’t just put an ellipsis here between the noteworthy, exclamation events. Most of life is lived in the ellipsis times. Writers might leave them out, implying they are not interesting or important, but these connective transitions hold one moment to the next.
Ancient Mystery’s voice reminds us to ponder the simple, ordinary flow between the exclamation mark times. When finished with one day, we continue our lives into the next. Today, dot-dot-dot, ends; then tomorrow becomes today. There is a sliver of sadness in this ordinary pattern, as something ends to provide room for another.
Living in Mystery
What does it mean to live in the mystery of ellipses and exclamation marks, embracing life’s punctuation? First, it means acknowledging that much of life could be punctuated with ellipses. As our stories continue day to day, many ordinary parts of our journeys could be expressed as dot-dot-dot. Rather than viewing such uneventful transitions as trivial, not worthy of recording in the details of our life’s story, we can view our lives through the lens of the forest, where transitions are the calm cadence of life’s normal flow.
I’m reminded of how songs end, most fade away and a few end with a crescendo of celebratory sound. At the symphony, I admit I enjoy the latter. To me, life’s chapters, like the orchestral productions, should end with an exclamation point, not an ellipsis. The fading away leaves me sad, while the crescendo ending fills my being to overflowing. Aaah. That’s how a song should end, I think.
And so, too, can the way we celebrate the end of life’s chapters. It was so good for me to be celebrated by a recognition of two decades of my professional life. I was fine living in the ellipsis, but the exclamation mark infused my being with joy, pushing away some of the residual grief at the loss of my role in an amazing program.
Celebrating seasons and people is important, adding an exclamation mark to life’s paragraphs. Who do you know who might need to be celebrated, someone enduring the burden of a fading ellipsis season? Do you need to be celebrated? Life cannot exist as a series of exclamation marks, but a few, well-placed ones can add energy to life’s story. Embracing life’s punctuation means adding times of celebration for yourself or those who could benefit from adding them to their stories.
As an old mom to young parents, I want to remind you to enjoy the many ellipsis times in your life. The exclamation mark moments include times such as first steps, starting kindergarten, driving away for the first time, or graduating from high school. Life also brings the difficult exclamation mark moments such as accidents or illnesses, first break-ups, and broken dreams. Most days are life “to be continued” until the next. And, like the pattern of life in the forest, such ellipsis seasons are beautiful in their normalness. As a parent, enjoy the quiet wonder of life’s ellipses.
Embracing life’s punctuation, both ellipses and exclamation marks, calls for recognizing the mysterious weave of both into life’s story. Remember to celebrate the highlights of your story or the story of someone you love, adding the joy of an exclamation point to the narrative. Meanwhile, cherish the simple beauty of life’s ellipsis times. May you find joy each day in your life, to be continued, dot-dot-dot.
Connecting with Mystery
Dear Lord of All Mystery, thank You for adding punctuation to my life’s story, both the exclamation marks and the ellipses. Help me to add celebrations to my story and to the stories of those whose stories need them. Show me the simple joy of an ellipsis to-be-continued day. Until we talk again. Dot-dot-dot. Amen.
Notes from Dr. Mac
If you want to do your own investigation of any of the scriptures I use, I suggest you go to Bible Gateway. This free online version of the Bible allows a search of words or phrases in various translations. I encourage you to read the book of Acts.
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