...Before It's Too Late.

I originally wrote this about four years ago. I was going through my books recently and found it. Enjoy.

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The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated. Every man/woman whether consciously or sub-consciously wants to be praised, appreciated and encouraged. We want to hear words like "I love you", "I admire you", "You look pretty", "Your dress is beautiful" and things like that. Do you know where we fail? We never tell others. A relationship expert once offered these moving words:

"I remember when I took your new car on the road and wrecked it. I thought you would be livid and come down hard on me, but you didn't. I remember when we went to the beach and you didn't want to go because you said it was going to rain. We went and it rained. I was sure you'd rub it in and say, 'I told you so!' but you didn't. Then there was the time I spilled blueberry juice down the front of your new white tux. I knew you'd be upset and blame me but you didn't. And remember that  formal evening? I was mistaken and told you it was casual. You wore blue jeans and felt like fish out of water. I was sure you would storm in anger and leave me standing the there. But you didn't. I wanted to tell you how much I loved and how much I appreciated you for all those things when you return from Vietnam; but you didn't."

Most of us think wonderful things about people, but we never tell them. We often forget or perhaps we don't even know that praise becomes valuable only if you impart it to others. "There is... a time to speak" (Ecclesiastes 3: 7b). This time is limited, when it's over, it's gone.

Sometimes, we even think we're doing something wrong. But, it's really important to know that for every thought we have towards another person, the important thing is the motive behind what we think or say about a person. Hence, even the recipients of compliments should be careful about what we insinuate about compliments.

The pronoun 'we' has been prominent in this write-up simply because I'm not innocent too. Apparently, I'm writing to encourage myself as well. If you think good things about someone, tell them. Give those little gifts, say those kind words, they always help. Believe me, they do. After all, it's not about just giving great things, but about giving, whether little or great with GREAT LOVE.

"...It got to my turn to introduce myself. Just before I spoke, he said 'do you know what I like about this girl?' He was talking about me. Two people tried guessing but they guessed wrong. Then he said 'her smile'. How happy I was..."
Bottom line; VOICE OUT! before it's too late.
Love,
Ifeoluwa.