I hate conflict.  It leaves my stomach in knots, sometimes for days.  It makes something inside me – something that often lies dormant – well up and yearn, more than anything, to communicate love.  Normally, I make understanding most important.  Normally, I think it’s okay to push the envelope of tact and civility in the hope of gaining clarity.  Normally, I think others can benefit from unfiltered honesty.  Until, somehow, somewhere, a line is crossed and I realize that even the best intentions of truth-telling and transparency become inconsequential if love and value are not communicated most clearly.  Unfortunately, once that line is crossed, the road to reconciliation can sometimes seem impossibly steep.  Oh, that the grace of God would step in and redeem the broken relationships and lost opportunity.