crooked

look at the modern medical definition of 

idiopathic scoliosis*: 

“spinal curvature with unknown cause”

then break down the Greek and Latin etymology:

idio- from idios: “one’s own or private”

-path: “experience, undergo, suffer”

skoliós-: “bent, crooked, askew, or devious”

-osis: “a condition”.

put those roots together and see 

what idiopathic scoliosis actually means:

“a crooked condition suffered on one’s own”

why do we use these words

to describe a childhood illness? 

why do we imply our children are devious? 

I was “obedient,” “good,” I

sang “be kind to your parents” 

in the 2nd grade talent show, and still, 

they called me crooked.

language matters