| The Building of Character |
Chapter 16 |
Page 4 |
The mothers come next to Christ in their friendship, — patient, unwearying, without return. Many children make it very hard even for their mother to be their friend, putting her love to very sore tests. Yet she too loves on in the face of all ingratitude, unkindness, unworthiness.
But there are few others who will be such friends to us as Christ and our mothers, who will be so patient with us, who will love us and love on when we do not take our just share of the friendship, or when we give only hurt or ingratitude in return for love and tenderness. There are few outside our own family who will take the trouble to maintain close relations with us, when we make it as hard as we can for them to do so. There may be one or two persons among those who know us, who have love disinterested enough to cling to us in spite of all our wounding of their affection, and all the needless burden we put upon their faithfulness. But such friends are rare, and the man is fortunate who has even one who will be such a friend to him while he puts the friendship to such unreasonable proof.
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