Think before you act

‘When the going gets tough, the tough get going,’ is a common mantra from those who do not seem to like the direction life is taking them. This is mostly when the road gets rough, couth and unkind. Life is a bed of roses, but anyone can choose to be happy, have a smile each new day despite the occasional pricks from life’s thorns. In other words, life is never a straight path, there must be ups and downs and this is manifested in all circles of life, social, economic and even political spheres. These unfriendly conditions do not ignore personal relationships. Two people start a relationship and all seems to be going on well before the prick of the relationship’s thorn is felt. There is joy and happiness, sorrow seems to be afraid of getting close. But when the thorn pricks through, spouses begin to feel pain and strain. The path becomes rough, life becomes soar. No more calls are made to water this relationship, it begins to dry up. The once blossoming relationship begins to wither. Tears and sorrow invade the once harmonious garden of love. The weeds begin to intrude in the relationship and grow bigger than the sacred love once shared. As much as love conquers all, what happens when no one is ready to get rid of an intruding weed? Yes, this is the path of that relationship, life makes people in a relationship cry but what matters most, is who offers a shoulder for the hurting soul to cry on. Conflicting couples should be able to identify who their real friends and fake friends are. Friends are those who will correct, rebuke and direct wisely in a conflicting relationship. Before any given partner makes drastic decisions such as; getting out of a relationship, it is necessary to consider weighing both sides of the consequences of that action. These could be negative and positive. If a partner is worth dropping, do not hesitate to do so. If one is not sure, I am afraid they do not know what they want. They need time to first discover themselves, know who they are and what they want in life. Let go and give them time to sort their lives out. When pride consumes a strained relationship, it becomes a completely different issue. Neither partner will be willing to bend to the tunes of the other, and apologize for whatever wrong they committed. At this point, it might be too late for redemption. It is better to avoid letting things get out of hand in a strained relationship. Try to keep the garden of love blossoming. After all, love conquers all, what matters most is how you handle the appearance of an intruding weed in your garden of love—pluck it out and do away with it. jacqueuwera@yahoo.com