“A certain amount of opposition is a great help to a man.  Kites rise against, not with, the wind.”

Lewis Mumford

Without the opposition of the wind the kite doesn’t rise and the eagle doesn’t soar. That is when true beauty is both exposed and captured. When the opportunity to grow is revealed through opposition and resistance.

The first thing that I thought of when reading this quote today was the verse from Proverbs; “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Proverbs 27:17. Then I went to my Bible and a couple of the preceding verses gave it even more clarity and meaning. “Better is open rebuke than hidden love.” “Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.” Proverbs 27: 5-6

We desperately need those people in our lives who love us enough to tell it like it is. They are the ones that won’t tell us what we want to hear. They love us enough to tell us what we really need to hear. They give us the wind to soar against and truly open up our ability to fly. I will be forever grateful to those who provide me with the opposition needed to get out of my own way and truly learn to fly.