The Fence

There once was a little boy who had a bad temper. His Father gave
him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper,
he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence. The first day the boy
had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he
learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily
gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper
than to drive those nails into the fence....Finally the day came when
the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and
the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that
he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the young boy was
finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father
took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said," You have
done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will
never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just
like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't
matter how many times you say I'm sorry, the wound is still there."
A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one.
Friends are a very rare jewel indeed. They make you smile and encourage
you to succeed. They lend an ear, they share words of praise and they
always want to open their hearts to us."

Please forgive me if I have ever left a hole in your fence...................