A Kiss of Friendship
An honest answer
Proverbs tells us that an honest answer is like a kiss of friendship. What does this mean? To understand this statement, we must understand friendship and honesty.
Friendship is a relationship of mutual affection between two people. To have a friendship, both people must like and enjoy each other. We can be a friend to someone we do not know, but we won’t have a friendship with that person.
If someone is honest, he is free of deceit and untruthfulness. He won’t hide the truth, nor will he water it down or twist it to make truth something it is not. When a person is honest, he holds no secrets in an attempt to deceive. It doesn’t mean he tells everything he knows; it means he is honest with information he gives. When a person deliberately withholds information for the purpose of hiding truth, he is not honest even if he doesn't tell a lie. Share on X
There’s a common expression we often hear: honesty is the best policy. Although often attributed to Benjamin Franklin [1700s], it was first written by Sir Edwin Sandys. Sandys was an official for the Virginia Company which founded Jamestown, Virginia, in the early 1600s.
a kiss of friendship
A true kiss of friendship is sealed by the honesty of both parties. When there is deceit, betrayal, fudging, and untruth, it is not true friendship, and there can be no trust.
Today, many folks think nothing of telling that little white lie or of fudging the truth just a little in order “not to hurt” someone. Truth be told, that lie is more hurtful than the telling of truth would be.
There are ways to be truthful without bringing condemnation to someone’s heart. We must consider the greater good in following integrity. We must be true to ourselves and true to our friends if we want be people of integrity.
Sometimes we don’t tell the truth because we don’t want to lose a person’s friendship or love. Other times we fudge because we do not want them upset with us. We’re afraid they will choose a different side than ours, and we “can’t afford” to lose them. If that’s the reason for the friendship, then it isn’t truly a friendship, is it? It’s a relationship built on falsehood; who wants that kind of friendship?
A friend who is honest with care is the kind of friend to have. This is also the kind of friend we should be. A true kiss of friendship means both parties are genuinely honest with each other. They trust each other to be honest with them, even if it hurts.
That’s the only kind of friendship to have. It’s the only kind of friend to be.
Give the kiss of friendship!
Photo credits: pixabay.com
