Letter 59: (The reply to Basil's somewhat angry answer to the last.) This was a case which any wiser man would have foreseen; but I who am very simple and foolish did not fear it in writing to you. My letter grieved you; but in my opinion neither rightly nor justly, but quite unreasonably. And while you did not acknowledge that you were hurt, neither did y...
Gregory to Basil.
This is a situation that any wiser man would have foreseen, but I -- simple and foolish as I am -- did not anticipate it when I wrote to you. My letter grieved you. In my judgment, it should not have, neither rightly nor justly. But I could see that you were hurt, even though you did not admit it directly.
I know you, Basil, better than you know yourself. When you are wounded, your silence is louder than other men's shouts. But I will not apologize for telling you the truth. If your friend cannot speak honestly to you, who can?
Still, I grieve that I have caused you pain, even unintentionally. And I offer you this: come to me, or let me come to you, and let us settle face to face what letters only make worse. Written words are treacherous things -- they carry the message but lose the tone.
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