On getting caught...

I often think of myself as a walking contradiction. I actually wear it with pride. I'm a complex little bugger. My contradictory mindsets may seem hypocritical to some, but I find a great deal of promise in them. What can I say? I believe in balance, even if it means embodying extremes.

For example, I'm one of the more cynical people you'll ever meet, but, at the same time, I assume a great deal of faith in every person who walks into my life. Though I acknowledge there's a high likelihood of that person letting me down in a major way in the future, I still trust them with everything until that day and hold nothing back. Further, though I may get really pissed off from time to time, I rarely give up on people. Am I wrong for seeing something honorable in that?

This all leads me to tell you that I caught someone in a lie today, and I'm not quite sure what to do about it. It's someone in whom, despite a lot of challenges, I've invested a lot of loyalty, and with good reason. The lie is not that big, and it was one this person likely put forth in the spirit of easing my ever troubled mind, but, in the end, it doesn't make it right.

So while I'm not surprised, I am supremely disappointed. Particularly because so little was to be gained with this fib; it was pointless. Still, it's enough to change my perspective, certainly, and maybe even a bit of strategy. And I'll get over it. It'll take a little while, but it will happen.

All this reminds me is while the truth can hurt, a lie hurts even more in the end and accumulates a much greater weight as time goes on. It reminds me to value those in my life who understand the value of honesty (even better if you've mastered the art of gentle honesty) and who see its value in return.