I've been thinking, over the past two days, about some of the things that are the most important to me. If you're married, think about the one thing that makes your marriage special. If you're not married, give some thought to the friends that you have and what makes those friendships unique.
I have given some thought to my own marriage, and, the friendships I have with people and what one common thread makes them all special.
When Becky and I hadn't been married that long, we had a conversation that involved trust for one another and the vital part that it played in maintaining a strong and successful marriage.
I worked with a woman who was nearly old enough to be my mother. She was someone that I cared about. I enjoyed the conversations we had about life and about our families. Our relationship was always appropriate. This woman asked me one day if I wanted to go get a burger for lunch. I responded that I would if someone else came with us. She gave me a funny look as if I was crazy. I explained to her that I knew it might sound crazy but that it just doesn't look good. It would be my luck that I would run into somebody that I knew and then their thoughts would run crazy about me being alone with another woman. Becky and I vowed to each other that even at work we would not go to lunch with someone of the opposite sex, alone. The appearance doesn't look good and I wouldn't ever want Becky to have reason to not trust me. "Self-trust is the first secret of success."(Ralph Waldo Emerson) I want to do things that allow me to maintain trust for myself.
There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about the decisions I make. Each one is based on trust or the trust that would be lost by making a poor one.
I have friends that I would trust with my own life. I believe that no matter what, they would guard my heart and all would be well. The number of these kinds of friends is smaller in number but important none the less.
I want to be a person that others can trust. When I say that I'll do something, there should be no question that it will get done. When I say that I'm in one place, it is sure that I am there. When someone tells me something in confidence, they can be sure that I will not tell another person...PERIOD!
These are the things that I want to do. There is a saying,"that it is better to be trusted , than it is to be loved." I believe that is true.
