Flowers and Thorns

It is a fact of psychology that no single person can be an amalgam of all good qualities. It is no simple matter to label a person wholly good or wholly bad. If there is to be harmony within a community, the bad sides of its members must be tolerated, while their good sides are appreciated. If we want to pluck flowers, we have also to bear the thorns that come with them. There is no way that one who cannot put up with thorns will be able to possess the flowers of this life.