Humans Compared to Porcupines

The German philosopher Schopenhauer compared the human race to a bunch of porcupines huddling together on a cold winter’s night. He said, “The colder it gets outside, the more we huddle together for warmth; but the closer we get to one another, the more we hurt one another with our sharp quills. And in the lonely night of earth’s winter eventually we begin to drift apart and wander out on our own and freeze to death in our loneliness.” Christ has given us an alternative-to forgive each other for the pokes we receive. That allows us to stay together and stay warm. (Wayne Brouwer, Holland, Michigan, quoted in Leadership, p. 68).