For the Want of a Horseshoe Nail
Hmmm, where is your line in the sand and are you prepared to defend it?
I first heard the proverb at the head of this post many years ago. Itimmediately resonated with me and became etched into my memory. It has come tomind at regular intervals in my life as questionable situations arise andcontinues to do so.
If you have not heard the proverb before, let me explain. It refers to a situation in which theresult of a failure to predict or correct a minor issue causes that minor issueto escalate and compound itself into a major issue. It may only be in hindsightthat the chain of causation becomes apparent.
Theproverb has been passed down over the centuries, surviving the test of time,and has been quoted by many including, I understand, Benjamin Franklin in his “PoorRichard’s Almanac”.
Why has it come tomind again now? The current context is one of personal integrity. We all have acode of values by which we live. Yours may be different from mine. I respect thatand expect the same consideration from you.
To be quite frank, ifyou are unwilling to give me that consideration, I have no room for you in mylife.
In the times in whichwe are living, we are increasingly being asked, and sometimes told, to do thingswith which we do not agree. In each circumstance, we arrive at a decisionpoint. Is this a battle I want to take on?
If the act involved has minor consequences, we may chose to live to fight another day. But there comes a time when our personal integrity is at stake. At that moment, if we lack the courage of our convictions, it is the equivalent of the horseshoe-nail – setting off a chain of events which changes our life forever and not for the better.
Taking a stand willalways have consequences. Fear of those consequences can tempt us to swallow ourpride and fall in line. We may breathe a sigh of relief. But I promise you thatcompromising our integrity will break a fundamental part of our being that cannever be repaired.
When your days arewinding down and you see the end coming, I sincerely hope that thehorseshoe-nail does not come back to haunt you. I do not intend to find myselfin that position.
~ NowAvailable Online from Amazon, Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: HuntingMuskie, Rites of Passage – Stories by Michael Robert Dyet
~ Michael Robert Dyet is alsothe author of Until the Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel whichwas a double winner in the Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’swebsite at www.mdyetmetaphor.com or the novel online companion at www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog .
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