The Lesson of the Nails

A father gave his irritable son a nail and told him that every time he lost his temper, he should hammer a nail into the fence. Soon, the fence was covered with nails. As the boy learned to control his emotions, one day he didn't hammer in any nails all day. The next day, the father told him to pull out one nail for each day he managed to stay calm. Soon, all the nails were pulled out. The father pointed to the numerous holes in the fence and said, "Although the nails are gone, the holes remain."
So, the words you say when you're angry are like these nails—they leave scars that are difficult to heal. Even if you make amends, the scars will still be there.