We are all conscious of what people say about us. Our neighbors, friends, relatives, and officemates always has something about us. Here's a story about a neighbor who knows much more about you than what you expect...

A small town prosecuting attorney called his first witness to the stand – a grandmotherly, elderly woman. He approached her and asked, “Mrs. Jones, do you know me?” She responded, “Why, yes, I do know you Mr. Williams.

I’ve known you since you were a young boy. And frankly, you’ve been a big disappointment to me. You lie, you cheat on your wife, you manipulate other people and talk about them behind their backs. You think you’re a rising big shot when you haven’t the brains to realize you never will amount to anything more than a two-bit paper pusher. Yes, I know you.”

The lawyer was stunned. Not knowing what else to do he pointed across the room and asked, “Mrs. Williams, do you know the defense attorney?” She again replied, “Why, yes I do. I’ve known Mr. Bradley since he was a youngster too. I used to baby-sit him for his parents. And he, too, has been a real disappointment to me. He’s lazy, bigoted, he has drinking problem. The man can’t build a normal relationship with anyone and his law practice is one of the shoddiest in the entire state. Yes, I know him.”

At this point, the judge rapped the courtroom to silence and called both counselors to the bench. In a very quite voice, he said with menace, “If either of you asks her if she knows me, you’ll be jailed for contempt!”

"A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches." Proverbs 22:1

Lying has been a lifestyle, from age to name, agendas and alibis, weight to height, even gender! However, sometimes we need to be extra careful... 

John invited his mother over for dinner. During the meal, his mother couldn’t help noticing how beautiful John’s roommate Julie was. She had long been suspicious of a relationship between John and his roommate, and this only made her more curious. During the course of the evening. While watching the two interact, she started to wonder if there was more between John and Julie that met the eye.

Reading his mom’s thoughts, John volunteered, “I know what you must be thinking, but I assure you, Julie and I are just roommates,”

About a week later, Julie came to John and said, “Ever since your mother came to dinner, I can’t find the beautiful silver spoon. You don’t suppose she took it, do you?”

John said, “Well, I doubt it, but I’ll write her a letter just to be sure.” So he sat down and wrote:

Dear Mother, I’m not saying you ‘did’ take a silver spoon from my house, and I’m not saying you ‘did not’ take a silver spoon. But the fact remains that one has been missing ever since you were here for dinner.

Love,
John

Several days later, John received a letter from his mother which read:

Dear Son, I’m not saying that you ‘do’ sleep with Julie, and I’m not saying that you ‘do not’ sleep with Julie. But the fact remains that if she was sleeping in her own bed, she would have found the silver spoon by now.

Love,
Mom

P.S. And oh by the way, the next time please, do not lie to your mother