He that keeps malice harbors a viper in his breast

Most religions and many schools of psychology teach the importance of forgiveness. The problem with bearing grudges is that they can distort the personality and over time make a person prone to depression and ill health.

Now, it seems to be counter intuitive to be totally forgiving, and commonnsense does seem to bear out that if you are weak you are more likely to be attacked. It follows that the knowledge that you have the capacity to retaliate and are prepared to do so if neccessary will often deter an enemy from attacking you. Speak softly and carry a big stick.

But sometimes you have to be wise for two. If you can rise above knee-jerk retaliation, and have an inside understanding of a situation, and the reasons for the attack, you might be able to see that by understanding and forgiving your enemy you could turn them into a friend. It might just pay you to take a loss and prevent a tit-for-tat escalation.

This requires judgement and insight and is a mark of true wisdom.

It is hope alone that makes us willing to live

There are times in everyone's life when all the negatives crowd in - the extreme example being depression, when life seems devoid of all meaning and purpose.

Experiencing the downside of life is part of the springboard to the upside so has to be understood as a natural phenomenon and not feared too much. We all know that nothing is constant, everything evolves and changes. There are trend lines and seasons that give a framework to our existence but within that, as individuals we are subject to the whims and caprices of chance - or so it seems.

The one thing that is our lifeline in the sea of doubts is hope. We can always hope that things will change for the better, and they usually do. We can be pulled back to the dry land and sunny climes of a happy existence. Hope springs eternal in the human breast.