Nails in 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 12 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 very rare jewels, 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.

(received this is an email)

WOW so true, thatnks for sharing.............

they say the tongue is the most harmful weapon one has, and it is..........

Wahooooo! I read that a long time ago and saved it then lost it.... I have searched and searched for it, for far to long! THANK you for giving it back to me!

That was sweet!!
and very true.

but in this case its our 'fingers' that are the weapon not the tongue.
typed words hurt just as much...

Thanks for posting this. A really great story. :D

What a wonderful morale that has! :D Thanks for sharing.

Words DO cut like a knife. Sometimes it's better to hold your tongue then say what you really feel. Words can never be taken back.

Remember, it's so easy to forgive, and so difficult to forget. THINK!