...This reminds me of a conversation I had recently with a friend. We were discussing what it is we pray for and she suddenly dropped a conversational bombshell.
'Every day', she said, 'I pray to be nice'.
You might think, well, what's wrong with that? But 'nice' to me... is what Kyrptonite is to Superman. It's a terrible word. An insipid, pastel-coloured emotion, laden with shoulds and oughts and good intentions and utterly devoid of passion.
However, when I suggested as much to this friend, she looked at me aghast. Now, to be fair, I could have been a little more sensitive. I didn't help matters by shouting 'You pray to be NICE? WHY? It's not an adjective, it's a biscuit. You're not nice! You'll never be nice! If you turn 'nice', our friendship is OVER'.
No-one is nice in the bible. I am so grateful my wife is not nice!
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