A careless word may kindle strife. The cruel word usually wrecks a life. Timely words help level stress… but it’s the loving words that heal and bless. Let's be careful of the words we say, keep them soft and sweet; we never know from day to day, which words we’ll have to eat. We could learn from the following wisdom inspired by the writings of an unknown writer.

If some bit of gossip comes, file the thing away; if a scandalous, spicy crumb, file the thing away; if suspicion comes to you that your neighbor is not true, let me tell you what to do,--file the thing away. Do this for a little while, then go out and burn the file.

Gossip is like mud thrown on a clean wall. It may not stick but it always leaves a dirty mark. Believe not half you hear; repeat not half you believe; when you hear an evil report, halve it, then quarter it, and say nothing about the rest of it.

Beware of a half-truth --you may have gotten the wrong half. Rumor is the most buoyant thing there is. It is easy to float one and hard to sink it.

Gossip is one form of crime for which the law provides no punishment. The slanderer differs from the assassin only in that he murders the reputation instead of the body.

The critical tongue gets its orders from an untrained eye, an unthoughtful mind, and an ungrateful heart.

You'll never move up if you're continually running somebody down. It is well to remember that mansions in the sky cannot be built out of the mud thrown at others.  A critical spirit comes from self-righteousness! If you know you're a mess yourself, you don't go around criticizing other people for their mistakes, but if you think you're so righteous, that's when you start picking on other people.

"I will speak ill of no man, not even in a matter of truth, but rather excuse the fault I hear, and upon proper occasions, speak all the good I know of everybody." Benjamin Franklin

By Tim Pedrosa

  
 

Gossip is like a river...It can always be traced back to its source. A lot of trouble in this world is caused by combining a narrow mind with a wide mouth. Many have fallen by the edge of the sword but not as many as by the tongue.