"Words are THE Voice of the Heart" Confucius

I was always told think before I spoke. Words I heard far too often but ignored most of the time. This is probably some of the most damaging advice we give. We are saying think about what you are going to say and if it is hateful or damaging, don't say it or lie! The problem isn't when the words exit our mouth but the condition of our hearts. The thinking before I spoke, those thoughts were the issue. Confucius said "Words are the voice of the heart"; how ugly is my heart?

Sure, I forgot to think and it slipped out is a great excuse to hurt someone. I just said what came to mind, I never really thought about it. What about the things that we don't say because we thought about it? What about the damage they do? THose thoughts rather ever made audible reflect the condition of our heart. What happens when they are verbalized? Can we ever really take them back? Maybe but have the thoughts gone? Or do the thoughts remain just being pushed further into our subconscious way of going about life?

Our words are a mere voice for our hearts. Our thoughts are nothing more than words waiting to be verbalized. Don't apologize for what you say but for the condition of our hearts.