Prickly People, Loving Choices

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

As I get older I have found

I have less tolerance
For people who need conflict to
Liven their existence.
 
The pricklier they seem to be,
The more they irritate.
And I no longer have patience
For those who aggravate.
 
But just before I fill the air
With words I can’t unsay,
I ask myself if I love them,
And then, I walk away.
 
For I was once a youthful voice,
Expounding on each thought;
Believing speech imperative,
Whatever pain it wrought.
 
I learned, with time, when I should speak
And when to just be still,
For prickly words make matters worse
And wither all good will.
 
So when you hear the quarrel start
In someone else’s voice,
Just leave them to their prickly thoughts.
You make the loving choice.

1 Timothy 1:16

But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life.