Honesty

What do you think of people who are honest? Not just people who tell the truth, but people who are not afraid to offer their honest opinion, regardless of how frank, riveting, blatant, or brutal it may be? I have pondered this off and on for many years. I must admit I am drawn to people who speak so honestly. I find them refreshing. Sure they sting sometimes and certainly say things I don't always want to hear. Nevertheless, I would rather be around such honesty than constantly be forced to cipher through the charades people play and the masks same people hide behind.

It is annoying to engage in conversation with people who require interpretation to determine what they really mean. Such controlling behavior detracts from honesty and lays a foundation for mistrust. Abusive may not be too strong a word for those who muck around the truth creating a near impossibility for honest discourse. Whether it be marriage partners, friendships, colleagues, neighbors, or peers -- you name it -- when you are not honest you are less than fair. You are less than fair and burdensome to others.

Honestly, I think honesty is a top commodity for deciding what is meaningful in life, certainly in creating quality relationships. Say what you mean and mean what you say.

Personal note: After a ten day hiatus from offering blog thoughts I wonder who cared. My stats counter indicates some of you checked daily for a new post. I apologize for the tedium in checking this blogspot only to find it not updated. What can I say? I resolve not to take such a break without notifying you next time. In a weird way the practice of blogging is similar to casting seed to the wind. The sower has precious little knowledge of where the seed settles and rarely learns whether or not the seed germinates. Thank you to those readers, particularly Scott, Wendy and JoAnn, who have offered comments in past weeks. The dialogue validates my time and efforts.