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Dear Readers,
I always tell my children, “Telling the truth is
always better than telling a lie. A lie will come
back to bite you in the bottom.” Honesty is
certainly the best policy; it can never hurt you.
Though you may have to suffer the consequences of
your actions, a lie will only make it worse.
What do you do when someone is telling lies about
you?
This is a tough one. You could confront them, but if
they were dishonest, they may be vindictive or
hurtful as well. If hurting you hurts others in
return, then you don’t want to negatively provoke
them. Do you just sit back and let them hurt you? It
is a difficult course to steer.
FAMILIES Magazine was recently put in this same
dilemma. Someone told a hurtful lie about us. It was
not the first time and I am sure it won’t be the
last. The publishing business is very competitive;
there are many publications all trying to win the
same advertising dollars. Since we started FAMILIES
almost 15 years ago, there have been numerous
publications start up and shut down. It is not an
easy thing to do, but we feel our honesty has helped
us survive in our competitive market
Dishonesty can touch us at home. Once my daughter,
Brittany, arrived home from elementary school and
was very upset because a classmate had told a lie
about her to the teacher. Brittany was so upset she
was sobbing. She could not understand how someone
could do this. She kept telling me, “It’s not fair.
It’s not fair.” She felt so betrayed. I cried along
with her, my heart also hurting because of her pain.
After a while she asked me, “How could the teacher
believe her?” I didn't have an answer for her. I
told her that her actions would have to prove the
other child wrong. It was up to her to show everyone
that she was a good person.
She said, “But is that fair that I have to prove I
am right when she told the lie?" She was right. I
wanted to take away her pain and help her feel good
about the kind, loving and honest young lady I knew
she was, but as a parent, I knew I had to let her
work it out for herself and learn from the
experience.
We at FAMILIES are learning as well. Though we are
hurt, we recognize the world is not always fair,
especially in the publishing industry. We will all
learn to develop a thicker skin because we love what
we do. We do it with passion and enthusiasm. Our
readers tell us how much they enjoy and benefit from
our magazine, which makes all the hard work
worthwhile - and if someone out there doesn't
believe in us, if they are content in telling lies,
we will simply work harder to prove ourselves.
Here's to life's continual lessons. Happy Parenting!
Brenda
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