Truth

A little girl said, “Truth may hurt for a short time, but a lie hurts all the time.”  A little bit of guilt can go a long way to making us better persons.  Some people lie and it does not seem to bother them at all, but we don’t really know what is going on inside of them, and its consequences over the long haul.  A lie fixes an immediate situation.  A lie’s energy might come from fear, and fear is never eradicated by a lie.  Fear stays with us and has long term consequences.  I have found that facing the truth, telling it to someone, can have short term pain.  But it is short term and most often leads to a better outcome down the road.  I think of all the people who have benefited from telling the truth in a personal inventory or in making an amends.  They often find the outcomes much better than they feared.  When people ask me, “Are you a good priest?” I say, “No. I am mediocre.”  Though it may be true, often some nice consequences and surprises comes out of that.  To say that I am no good would be a lie, or that I am a ten on the scale would be a lie.  Mediocre fits.  But I have some good days too!  And some good blogs here and there.