You may have heard the story of the young man who spread a criticism (which later proved only half true) about an older brother that caused much grief in the assembly. He later apologized and asked the old man what he could do to atone for his wrong. The old brother grabbed a feather pillow under his arm and took the boy to the top of the hill. Wind tugged at their hair and flapped their coats against their legs as they looked down at the village and fields below. The offended brother handed the young man the pillow.
"Rip it open," he said.
The boy was perplexed. But he did what he was told. Instantly the wind seized the feathers, tossing them in flurries out into the air. A cloud of feathers whirled about their heads, then spread far and wide as thousands of feathers began falling beyond the village, settling on sidewalks, in hedges, in streams, in trees, among deep grass.
"Now," said the older man, "go and collect all the feathers and put them back in the pillow."
"All of them?"
"All of them!"
"But that's impossible."
Placing his hand on the young boy's shoulder, the brother said kindly, "I know. I just wanted you to realize how impossible it is to retrieve a criticism once made."
When you are tempted to criticize another person, remember this story.
"THY WORD HAVE I HID IN MINE HEART, THAT I MIGHT NOT SIN AGAINST THEE."