The Best Favor to Be Had…
The word favor arrives in all shapes, sizes and forms and frequently strikes a chord in our heads. We raise our eyebrows with perturbation and wonder what one might ask of us? What agenda might be at work? Perhaps we’re a tad cynical as many a time a friendly plea accompanies it. Maybe we owe it as part of an earlier quid pro quo, in which case we needn’t be surprised. More than naught however, it arises without us realizing. And it’s in those times, when we least expect it, that the best favor is to be had.
The best favor to be had often doesn’t show its truth immediately. Instead, shrouded as a mysterious charade, it reveals its nature over time. The benefactor can initially misinterpret it for disappointment and disillusion, while the grantor hasn’t an inkling as to what they’re granting. With each passing day, it reveals its truth. Momentum gathers and what once seemed nebulous and dark, becomes clear and transparent. It’s then, and only then, that the full breadth of the favor comes to light. It’s then, and only then, that the benefactor sees the positive in the negative and thankfully declares the words, “They did me a favor.”
Life is peculiar in this manner. We never know what might or might not strike us. What one day seems sane and rational, the next seems crazy and nonsensical. We ask ourselves, “What was I thinking?” Hence, the necessity to be alert (see Once Awake, Stay Alert…) and to pay heed to warnings (see The Anatomy of a Wake-up Call…), as they are the prerequisite for a life with few regrets. When things don’t go our way, we mustn’t fret nor worry, but be thankful. There’s a reason something happens the way they do. Perhaps not explicable in the moment, but definitely understandable in the future.
When a person brings to light their true colors consider it the best favor to be had. Although their colors may be ugly and disingenuous, they are the truth and it’s from the truth we must guide our life. To join hands with a phony is to become a phony in turn, and that’s the worst of all possible outcomes. For the life of a phony is a sham and knows no boundaries. It’s an irreparable binge of deceit and trickery, which only a phony can rationalize and justify. It’s not without much umbrage that a phony protest as even a phony despises the ugly truth. That is, if they bear the self-awareness to recognize it.
It was American politician and polymath Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) who stated that, “Most people return small favors, acknowledge medium ones and repay greater ones – with ingratitude.”
As true as this might be, one cannot have enough gratitude for the best favor to be had, namely the one that is unknowingly gifted and unknowingly sought…
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