One day I had a telephone call from some familiar persons and I responded happily, the Hello with much joy in my heart, because it was someone that I esteem, someone very close only that the person on the other side of the line was very bitter, very sour and filled with venom.

I spoke of joy of receiving that phone call and that for me it would be a pleasure, and later following she spoke and said to me that if really, I liked her so much, that I should have called, I was an unnatural brother, who never visited her house, having a person as a brother was not worth it, and was playing the other poisons out more. . I heard all quietly left the person to vent and release all her anger, hurt, sadness, disappointment, riots, I waited until she said it all … and in the end she said, although all I really like you …. I thanked her, wished her a good day and life went on …

It was a great learning experience, because that day I had read something wonderful from Jesus when he taught on the Sermon on the Mount, giving different advice to his disciples saying: The good man brings forth good treasure from his heart and the evil man brings forth evil things of his evil treasure of his heart, because the mouth speaks of what the heart is full of. (Lk 6:45) I could actually try on the skin of this great truth.

Many times we are poisoned by bad treasures from many hearts and perhaps many times a day, at times the venom is not deadly when we take it only one time but it is going to lethal in the long run.

I am speaking of the venom that comes from other person that live with us, or others that we are obliged to be with day by day, those that many times are put in front of us, co-workers, persons that we encounter in our travels, in lines for the bus, metro, banks, hospitals, in the Church and in the restaurants of life

These persons may even not be conscious perhaps, they do not do this maliciously, until they want to be our friends, or they will live with us, or opening a dialog, beginning a conversation, and at times they open this dialog, already they are speaking badly, it may waiting in line together,it may be getting of a bus or metrok, or in a doctor’s office, supermarket, it is cold or raining. At times they may be speaking ill of the government and God, always bringing the context to the negative side. Many times this is going to poison our day.

Why do we carry this poison in us? It is very important that we know ourselves, of how we are made in God to be able to eliminate this evil that many times enters us and makes us fountains of destruction.

In order to not drink this venom, we need to undestand our humanity in God, and thus elevate our intelligence in wisdom, and to be able to transform the venom in full life in the blessing of God

And that which we want is to learn to transform these poisons, into an antidote, thus as in Butantã turning snake venom into serum, we want to turn these negative words into the word of blessing, in giving a new meaning to these situations that often happen and can poison us.

Fr. Vagner Baia

translated from Portuguese