NAIL IN THE FENCE Make sure you read all the way down to the last sentence. Most importantly the last sentence !!!! There once was a little boy who had a bad temper. His Father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence. Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say I'm sorry, the wound is still there. " A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one. Friends are very rare jewels, indeed. They make you smile and encourage you to succeed. They lend an ear, they share words of praise and they always want to open their hearts to us." It's National Friendship Week. Show your friends how much you care. Send this to everyone you consider a FRIEND, even if it means sending it back to the person who sent it to you. If it comes back to you,then you'll know you have a circle of friends. YOU ARE MY FRIEND AND I AM HONORED! Now send this to every friend you have!! And to your family. Please forgive me if I have ever left a hole !! Sign the letter and give or send to your friends, lets make the world a better place. Abolish Anger!!! Ralph James Coppley 4319 Mary St.SW Shallotte, NC 28470 910-754-7392 “Jesus loosed the chains of sin and set me free” http://www.carolinaroyalty.com

Hi Ralph, Thanks for the post. I've seen this before, but it was nice to read again. I'm sure others will benefit from the reminder. At the very least if I use the same methods of dealing with my anger, I might eventually get my fence fixed ;-) To your success. Tim

Hello Ralph: Thanks for sharing this awesome story! Its message is one we can all learn from as well as live by! Anger is such a powerful emotion but it can also be a positive one as it can motivate us to face difficult situations that we have been resisting. I am presently teaching a health course and one of last week's sessions was on anger/fear & frustration. When we are faced with an illness, one of the many emotions we can experience is anger. We may feel a sense of helplessness and lack of understanding and sometimes say "Why me"? Once we learn to work through our anger we will find an incredible sense of strength, courage and comfort. Regards Elaine

I had to give it up.  Anger, especially with teen-agers, causes a lot of stress.  Stress causes high blood pressure.  High blood pressure kills.

My blood pressure is down these days.  Smiling a lot helps.