our words get the better of the best of us.

quick to listen.

be willing to lend an ear. willing to give of your time. your advice. be someone to vent to. someone to cry to. to share sorrows & griefs with. laughter & joys with. be someone who listens without judgment. without taking sides. without criticism. someone who is willing to be silent and in that silence show an infinite wisdom and grace. be someone worthy of trust. be ready and attentive always, always listen.

slow to speak.

hold your tongue. be slow. not in a rush. not with rage. or in anger. not with malice or deceit. or lies. stop. listen. think. let calm. cool. rational words flow from within. use wise words. love words. genuinely soft words. carefully placed, thoughtful words. not racing, raging, ugly, bullet words, shooting forth, filled with venom aimed straight for the heart, spewing with accusations, misconceptions & filth, rubbish, slime, muck...boo! if we use words as weapons and as threats, if our tongue only knows how to formulate lies and spouts only evil when will we ever be trusted. we will hurt. wound. bruise. what friends will be left standing at our side. what will we have in the end. our words hurt. they soothe. encourage. uplift. spur on. challenge. hit hard. blow things out of proportion. shake things up. excite. thrill. attack. puncture. break down the walls we build up so high. ALWAYS...speak in love. with love. and through love. be slow to speak.

slow to become angry.

don't be hasty. don't attack. step back. count to ten. start again. anger is not the answer. it's only an act, a show, a front we put on. out of selfishness we become irrational. our pride has been hurt, wounded. we are a prideful people who, if made to look bad, lash out. at the first sign of embarrassment, if we don't get our way. if we're labeled a fool. proved wrong. owned. burned. schooled. spurned. mistaken. we get angry. filled with rage we strike. our words being the fastest way to level the playing field. our tempers get the better of the best of us. but it doesn't solve anything. our resentment only fuels the fire. our outrage only burns brighter. our consequences only serve to punish us further. we stew and stew over nothing. if we didn't take our pride so seriously. if we learned to laugh at our mistakes. be humbled by our embarrassment. be accepting if proven wrong. be alright with coming in last place. someone has to. people will notice how you handle bad news. how you deal with messy, confusing, unstable situations. anger solves nothing. be someone who is slow to become angry.