THIS IS THE KIND OF FRIEND YOU NEED – WE ALL NEED
Two friends were out on a big mountain hike. During the trip the two friends had an argument and friend A slapped friend B in the face.
Friend B was hurt BUT said nothing. Instead he wrote in the sand
“Today my best friend slapped me in the face“
The two friends kept hiking until they found a suitable place near the river. To relax and rest.
As they waded into the pool of water Friend B who had been slapped, got into trouble and was drowning, Friend A pulled him out of the water and saved his life.
After Friend B recovered from the incident he wrote on a STONE
“Today my best friend saved my life”
Friend A asked – “After I hurt you, you wrote in the sand, now you write on a stone – why?”
Friend B replied:
“When someone hurts us, we should write this down in sand – so the winds of Forgiveness can erase it away. But when someone does something good for us – we should write it in stone where no wind can ever erase it. “
So, what are the lessons we can take away from this?
Lesson One
- It is good to have a good friend to slap you in the face once in a while
- A definition of a good friend is someone who will tell when you are being an A-Hole when you are being an A-Hole
- Most people would just walk away and say to others – “This person is being an A Hole.
- When was the last time someone gave it to you straight? The kind of person who would slap you in the face when you are out of line and save your life in the next instance?
- Question you can ask a good friend “What is the one thing you see me doing that is good or bad?” and “What do you think is holding me back from becoming a better person?”
- See what type of friend they are – the harder they slap – the better the friend
Lesson Two – when you are slighted or feel you are mistreated – it is naïve to say it doesn’t hurt. Of course, it hurts! But write your resentment in the sand – don’t etch it on your heart (in stone)
Write it in sand and let the winds of forgiveness eventually blow the hurt away.
People hold grudges and resentments for decades – they keep hurting themselves and no one else knows about it, remembers or cares about it. While we feel anger, hate, resentment – blocks Forgiveness.
All because they wrote the rancour of the moment on the wrong surface,
So, remember slaps and the like – write them in the sand
The valuable big gestures friends do for us – write them in stone.
How many lines of resentment have you written in stone – time to rewrite them in the sand and share this with the relevant person. Forgive and turn resentment into Abundance Optimism Accountability and Responsibility and Peace.
Let your resentment flow into Forgiveness and improve your own life.
