NAILS IN THE FENCE
Betty I_O
178 Posts
There once was a little girl who had a very bad temper. Her mother gave her a hammer and a bag of nails and brought her out to a fence in their back yard. She told the girl that every time she lost her temper, she must hammer a nail into the back of the fence.
The first day, the girl had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as she learned to control her anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled. She discovered it was easier to hold her temper than to drive those nails into the fence. Finally, the day came when the girl didn't lose her temper at all. She told her mother, who then suggested that she now pull out one nail for each day she was able to hold her temper.
The days passed. The girl finally told her mother that every single nail was gone. The mother said, "You have done well, but now look at the holes in the fence. The fence has scars--it has been 'wounded.' It never will be the same. When you say or do things in anger, that leaves scars just like these. It won't matter how many times you say 'I'm sorry' - the wound still will be there. A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one. You should not hurt others. You should rejoice in having good people in your life, and--most of all--you should cherish the gift of friendhip."
"True friends are very rare jewels. They can make you smile and encourage you. They can lend an ear, they can share words of praise and times of grief, they can open their hearts to us... and they can forgive us if we have ever left a hole in their fence."
It's NATIONAL FRIENDSHIP WEEK . . . Show your friends how much you care.
The first day, the girl had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as she learned to control her anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled. She discovered it was easier to hold her temper than to drive those nails into the fence. Finally, the day came when the girl didn't lose her temper at all. She told her mother, who then suggested that she now pull out one nail for each day she was able to hold her temper.
The days passed. The girl finally told her mother that every single nail was gone. The mother said, "You have done well, but now look at the holes in the fence. The fence has scars--it has been 'wounded.' It never will be the same. When you say or do things in anger, that leaves scars just like these. It won't matter how many times you say 'I'm sorry' - the wound still will be there. A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one. You should not hurt others. You should rejoice in having good people in your life, and--most of all--you should cherish the gift of friendhip."
"True friends are very rare jewels. They can make you smile and encourage you. They can lend an ear, they can share words of praise and times of grief, they can open their hearts to us... and they can forgive us if we have ever left a hole in their fence."
It's NATIONAL FRIENDSHIP WEEK . . . Show your friends how much you care.
Comments
(absolutely no offense to you Betty - I just saw humor there - it's been a tough day.)