I couldn't imagine what I had done to make my co-worker in my new office dislike me so. Unwarranted criticism and gossip assailed me. My attempts to win her over by "niceness" failed miserably. One day in the copy room, she turned on me with a vicious, verbal attack and stalked out, slamming the door in my face! I was sorely tempted to react, either with anger or with self-pity.
Another co-worker came into the room, put her arm gently around my shoulder, and said, "You know, we're all pulling for you. We don't know what's wrong with her, but you have our support." Later that day, my supervisor called me into his office to ask if I'd like to file a complaint against my co-worker for harassment and creating a hostile work atmosphere. I actually considered this.
At this low point, I decided to call a Christian Science practitioner to help me pray. She referred me to First Corinthians, chapter 13, where the Apostle Paul speaks of Christly love. Portions of that well-known exhortation read, "Charity suffereth long, and is kind; . . . doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil . . . . Charity never faileth: but whether there be . . . tongues, they shall cease." Here was my answer! First, I saw that I did not have to seek my own, so to speak. I decided not to file a complaint against my co-worker. Second, the Bible verses reminded me that I could not be "easily provoked" or even aggressively provoked! They also promised me that all the tongue-wagging would cease.
