👁️

Once, a longtime friend asked me to help him out with money for mobile credit. An emergency. He promised to pay it back on the 5th. Forty reais.

I didn’t hesitate. I didn’t even worry about whether, if the roles were reversed, he’d do the same. I gave him the money—which meant I’d never hold it against him; whatever happened, I’d know if I had a friend worth more than gold.

On the 5th, the money was in my account.

By honoring small commitments, I understood that I could trust him with bigger ones.

So, my advice to you is: never give your trust completely.

Build it up slowly, so that trust has value and you don’t lose too much.

“Never test the depth of the water with both feet.”

Finding out a friend is false in a moment of crisis—that’s reckless.

Therefore, pay close attention to the trivial things in day-to-day life, because, as the saying goes, the devil is in the details. That is: disloyalty, dishonesty, lies—they don’t just appear in the moments of ruin in a friendship or relationship; they’re right in front of you, in the lie your girlfriend tells her parents, in the underhanded moves your friend makes with his business partner. But you prefer to ignore it, because it hasn’t affected you yet—or worse, because it benefits you.

In my case, I figured 40 reais was a small price to pay to see if a friend’s word had weight and value.

As I’ve seen happen before, since it wasn’t “a huge amount,” some might say:

- “I’ll pay it back later, I have bigger bills to cover” (and there’s never a smaller bill).

- “If he asks, I’ll return it” (trying to win through forgetfulness or wearing them down).

Or, my personal favorite:

- “Asking for ten reais back? If you’re starving, just let me know.”

Dishonesty knows no limits.

But it’s up to us to show what happens when they cross the line of our kindness.