Monday, March 8, 2010

say what i mean, mean what i say

"People can tame all kinds of animals and birds and reptiles and fish, but no one can tame the tongue. It is an uncontrollable evil, full of deadly poison."
James

when it comes down to it, i think one of the most important, and arguably one of the hardest, characteristics to acquire is the one of 'honesty'. now, i know this idea is always played up as some kind of virtue and people look to it when they need a certain answer from someone, but i really think this concept should spill into other facets of daily life.
here's a story a friend recently shared:

gretel "what do you think of this shirt and skirt?"
hansel "...it's ...nice" :D
gretel "is that what you really think? you were just going to let me walk out in this ugly combination?"
hansel "i'm sorry! i didn't know what to say!"

okay, maybe not the best example, but "gretel" [not real name] was testing to see if "hansel" [also not real name] would comment on the ugly clothing selection. yes, maybe it was a form of entrapment, but at some point we all want to see if the friends we have will be honest with us, even in a controlled situation.

silly clothing situations aside, i want to be someone who is honest with his friends, and be surrounded with people who value honesty. being told when i'm doing or saying something stupid is huge for self-betterment, and not knowing when i'm in the wrong is just detrimental to living in general. if your goal is to be artificial and/or attractive, it probably should be high on your list of attributes not to pick up.

don't be the yes-friend that says only what people want to hear, say what needs to be said.

K

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