Conditional motivational statement about self-improvement.
There was a boy with a bad temper. His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he should hammer a nail into the backyard fence. On the first day, the boy hammered 37 nails. Gradually, the number of nails driven into the fence decreased each day, as he discovered that controlling his temper was easier than hammering nails. Eventually, a day came when the boy no longer lost his patience or his temper. He shared this with his father. The father suggested, "From now on, whenever you manage to control your temper, pull one nail out." As time passed, the boy finally told his father that he had pulled out all the nails.
The father took him by the hand to the backyard and said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. This fence will never be the same as it was before. The words spoken in anger leave scars just like these holes. If you wound someone with a knife, no matter how many times you say sorry, the wound will remain. The pain caused by words is as difficult to bear as physical pain."
People often suffer permanent damage due to unavoidable conflicts. If we can start with ourselves and treat others with tolerance, we will surely receive unexpected blessings. By opening a window for others, we allow ourselves to see a more complete sky.
有一个脾气暴躁的男孩，父亲给了他一包钉子，并告诉他：每当发一次脾气，就在后院的篱笆上钉一颗钉子。第一天，男孩钉了37颗。随着时间的推移，每天钉下的钉子数量逐渐减少，他发现控制情绪比钉钉子要容易得多。直到有一天，男孩再也没有发脾气，并将这个好消息告诉了父亲。父亲建议道：“从现在起，每当你能控制住脾气，就从篱笆上拔掉一颗钉子。”日子一天天过去，男孩终于告诉父亲，他已经拔掉了所有的钉子。
父亲牵着他的手走到后院，轻声说道：“孩子，你做得很好，但请看看篱笆上的这些洞。这些栅栏永远无法恢复到原来的样子了。愤怒时说出的伤人话语，会像这些洞口一样，留下难以愈合的疤痕。就像用刀刺伤了人，无论道歉多少次，伤口依然会存在。言语带来的痛苦，与真实的伤痛一样令人难以忍受。”
人们常因一些无法挽回的僵局而遭受永久性的伤害。如果能从自身做起，开始以宽容的态度对待他人，相信你会收获意想不到的善果。为他人开启一扇窗，也是为自己推开一片更广阔的天空。