| Strength and Beauty |
Chapter 19 |
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In any case there is need of great wisdom. We must be sure, first of all, that it is love that prompts us to speak of the fault. Too often it is in anger and in jealousy that we do it. A man loses his temper with his friend and then tells him all the bad he knows or imagines of him. This is never the true way, and no good can come of it. Unless we can go to our brother in sincere love, after earnest prayer, and, with a heart truly solicitous for his good, deliver our unpleasant message, telling him of his sin or fault, we would better be silent.
There are some people who habitually see only the faults of others and have no eye for the good in them. These are in no wise fitted to be fault finders in the good sense. There is a Russian fable of a wise swine named Kavron, which found its way into the courtyard of the king’s palace. It saw only the kitchen and the stable. When it came back the mother asked: “Well, Kavron, what have you seen? They say that king’s palaces are filled with wealth and beauty, that there are fine pictures, rich tapestries, and valuable gems everywhere.” “Ah, this is all untrue,” answered Kavron. “I saw no pictures, no tapestries, and no diamonds; only dirt and offal.”
This is the way some people look at others’ lives. They visit only the kitchen and the stable. They see only the flaws and blemishes, and do not get even a glimpse of the noble things which are within the palace where the man himself lives. We should train ourselves to look always for the good in others, not for the evil; for the noble things, not for the infirmities and spots. There is far more good than evil in most people, and if we are looking for the good we shall not be so apt to see the evil.
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