On keeping confidences...

Thought: A shut mouth gathers no foot.

Biblical text: He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin. (Proverbs 13:3 NIV).

Constance Cameron tells a lesson her mother taught her. One day, when she was about eight, she was playing beside an open window. Inside, Mrs Brown was confiding a personal problem to Constance's mother. After Mrs Brown had gone, the mother realised that Constance had heard everything that had been said. She called her in and said, "If Mrs Brown had left her purse here today, would we give it to anyone else?"

"Of course not," the girl said. Her mother went on, "Mrs Brown left something more precious than her pocketbook today. She left a story that could make many people unhappy. That story is not ours to give to anyone. It is still hers, even though she left it here. So we shall not give it to anyone. Do you understand?"

She did. And from that day on, whenever a friend would share a confidence or even engage in careless gossip, she considered what they said to be the personal property of the other person - and not hers to give to anyone else.

The old saying bears great truth: "If you don't have something positive to say about someone or something, don't say anything."