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Their
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. It's National Friendship
Week. Show your friends how much you care. Send this
to everyone you consider a FRIEND, even if it means
sending it back to the person who sent it to you. If
it comes back to you, then you'll know you have a circle
of friends. YOU ARE MY FRIEND AND I CARE Please forgive
me if I have ever left a hole in Your fence. |
