The Hedgehogs

It was the coldest winter ever. Many animals died because of the cold. The hedgehogs, realising the situation, decided to group together to keep warm. This way they covered and protected themselves; but the quills of each one wounded their closest companions. After a while, they decided to distance themselves one from the other and they began to die, alone and frozen. So they had to make a choice: either accept the quills of their companions or disappear from the Earth. Wisely, they decided to go back to being together. They learned to live with the little wounds caused by the close relationship with their companions in order to receive the heat that came from the others. This way they were able to survive. The best relationship is not the one that brings together perfect people, but when each individual learns to live with the imperfections of others and can admire the other person's good qualities.

My Message:

None of us in this world are perfect, we all have our own unique issues and unless we accept other peoples' imperfections, we are never going to come together. This is what makes life, and the relationships we're in, so dynamic and real. It's so important to learn from those around you who have different perspectives, habits, hang-ups, goals, wants and fears. This is what makes us all human. You know that beauty often lies in the depths of imperfections and flaws. By dealing with the imperfections in our own character and in the character of others teaches us to be patient, tolerant and accepting. If everyone and everything we came into contact with was perfect or the same, we would never develop the capacity to be tolerant of differences, or to give the precious gift of acceptance to those we love most. As a result of this we may grow as human beings and come to see things in a fresh way, and adjust our ideas of what is truly perfect by learning the beauty of having patience

to get on with everyone around us.

May you have an Awesome week!

Darren Zwiers

"Accepting all the good and bad about someone. It's a great thing to aspire to. The hard part is actually doing it." ― Sarah Dessen