There once was a little girl who had a bad temper. Her mother gave her a bag of nails and told her that every time she lost her temper, she must hammer a nail into the back of the fence.

The first day the girl had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as she learned to control her anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down. She discovered it was easier to hold her temper than to drive those nails into the fence.

Finally the day came when the girl didn't lose her temper at all. She told her mother about it and the mother suggested that the girl now pull out one nail for each day that she was able to hold her temper.

Many days passed before the young girl was able to tell her mother that all the nails were gone. The mother took her daughter by the hand and led her to the fence.

Pointing to it, she said, "You have done well, my daughter, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like these holes."

"You can put a knife in a person and draw it out in regret. But it won't matter how many times you say "I'm sorry," the wound is still there. And in many ways, my dear, a verbal wound is as bad as a physical one."