3 Things in Life that Can Destroy You

What are these 3 things that can destroy you? They are Anger, Pride and Unforgiveness.

Anger – those feelings that can explode in a second and destroy not only you but those around you. Harbouring feelings of anger is like an active volcano, smouldering, waiting to explode and unleash its fury.
The smallest thing can trigger it off and lead a person to do things on the spur of the moment which he will most likely spend the rest of his life regretting. Murders have been committed in anger, harsh words have been uttered in a wild moment of anger. Heart attacks have been triggered by anger, people have been struck down by strokes in a fit of anger. Not only are relationships destroyed by anger but your life too can also be destroyed or lost.

Yet, anger is an emotion that is hard to control, especially if you have a short fuse and are easily provoked. I admire a person who can stay calm in the fury of someone’s anger. More often that not, the other person’s anger triggers your feelings too and you may even retaliate. The best thing to do is to turn on your heel and walk away.
However, that could also be risky as the other person, maddened by his anger, would be further infuriated and could go after you with murderous intent.

“Pride goes before a Fall” as the proverb goes. In some religions, it is also considered sinful to be proud. What makes a person proud? Status? Achievement? Wealth?


On the other hand it is not wrong to be proud of our child’s achievement so long as we are not boastful about it.

However, if you keep blowing your own trumpet about your achievements and status, you will definitely lose your friends unless all of you belong to the same group and get a thrill out of outdoing one another! After all “birds of a feather flock together”.

Some people may not like you because of your pride and they may want to take you down a peg or two, to humiliate you.

Then again, if someone is too proud to admit that he has made a mistake and continues to do the same thing even though he has been advised not to, then he could be heading towards ruin. He may even lose his wealth and all that he has worked for just because of pride.

Then how about being too proud to say sorry when you are in the wrong? This is true of relationships. After a misunderstanding or an argument, a partner may be unwilling to be the first to say “sorry” because of pride.
When the apology is not forthcoming, the aggrieved party may feel hurt or stay angry with the likely consequence of going separate ways.

Unforgiveness is a cancer that will eat into your soul and eventually destroy you. You will become a bitter person because you cannot forget and you cannot forgive. Ever heard of “To err is human, to forgive, divine”? No one is perfect and all of us have done something wrong, something we now regret. Surely that wrong should be forgiven and not held against us for our lifetime?

Yet I know of people who harbour feelings of unforgiveness that have degenerated into hatred, bitterness and cynicism. All these feelings have left a mark on their faces. Lines of bitterness have been etched into their faces and their expressions are dour and very unattractive.
Until she learns to forgive and forget the unhappy experience, she will never be free of the burden hanging like a millstone round her neck, weighing her down. She will no longer have the joie d’vivre as she will only radiate negative vibes. This is truly self-destruction.

So if we can learn to control and diffuse our anger, be less proud and more forgiving, perhaps we can then say that we are making progress in the school of life.

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