Trust withdrawn

If you realized that an entry from a few days ago is now missing, yes, I intentionally deleted it, at the request of the person I had quoted in it. He gave me his permission to quote him prior to me writing the blog. But, today, he asked that his name be removed. I figured I'd do him a favor and just delete the entire entry, since my limerick describes him specifically anyway.

Very rarely have I had a falling out with anybody in all my Second Life. Besides griefers, people generally respect my wishes, my work, and my emotions.

This blog is not a rambling of the mundane things I do each day. It is a revelation of who I am and a journal of my evolution. It is a reflection of the wisdom I am gaining as I go through my Second Life. And I am grateful that this blog occasionally touches and inspires some of my readers, even if all I do is show a different perspective of a universal situation.

But if someone is so "inspired" that he would use the same original metaphors (as in my "Heart Gravel" entry) to say the same things, -- not by properly quoting me but in a different form (like a poem), -- am I not justified in distrusting him? And yet *he* is offended that I no longer trust him.

Trust is not a right. Trust is earned. It cannot be bribed by saying, "I trust you; therefore, you must trust me."

In a world where we know very little about the people we deal with, we suspend distrust to allow a connection to happen. But when we realize that the person does not have our interests at heart, when they insist on having their way, then we withdraw the trust, like a turtle pulling back into its shell. It is only natural. It's a survival instinct.