Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt.
— ABRAHAM LINCOLN
Many people, myself included, have always attributed this quote to Mark Twain, but a little research indicated that good ol' Honest Abe actually said it first.
Most people who know and tolerate me would agree that I'm a rather quiet person by nature. Throughout my life I've never had very much to say. Some of my teachers wrote notes on my progress reports like, "Eric is so quiet I can't tell he's there. I've almost marked him absent!" And it's still true today.
I'm an observer, a people watcher if you will. Always have been. It's been said that all the world's a stage. All seven billion people who call this planet home are in that production called "life," and many really take their roles to heart. Unfortunately, a lot of those folks have the gift of gab, and too many of them have apparently had that gift super-sized. I've learned that some people not only run at the mouth, but their mouths runneth over.
The trouble is that what is said cannot be unsaid. Sad to say, a lot of these loquacious folks—too many by my observation—will brew up a verbal storm and dump it right on your doorstep, leaving you in its wake. No facts, nothing to back it up, just "here's what I think, and I'm right."
On the other side of the coin, sometimes it's better to speak rather than to remain silent. This is where we have to use our heads. Strange as it may seem, this quiet person has lent some common sense to an issue on a few occasions when you would have least expected it. Sometimes, you have to.
Next time, I'll discuss my favorite color and why it is. Stay hued.
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