A true master never offends anyone, but she or he is always truthful.
I am amazed and in awe of the Desert Fathers who never used 500 words when 15 would do.
They obviously took their cue from Jesus. He could evidently teach for a long time, yet no teaching was longer than a few sentences.
Yet, they spoke the truth with love and perhaps some went away disappointed or didn’t agree, but they were not offensive.
There is a cartoon from early in the popular Internet era where the wife calls from the bedroom, “It’s time for bed, dear.” The husband replies, “Just a moment, I found another error on the Internet I need to correct.”
How hard it is on social media to speak the truth to someone or point out an error (gasp, yes, they do occur) in 15 words without offending. Lord knows I’ve tried myself–and failed.
I forget which famous person (probably attributed to many) said, “I apologize for the length of this letter. I didn’t have time to write a short one.”
To be truthful without offense in a few words requires thought and compassion. Each is in short supply these days.
Faith Venture 
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