Is it normal for me to not want to get close to some people?

Of course, there are some people with whom you may not want to be close. There is an old story about a saint who rescues a scorpion that is drowning in the river. He pulls it out of the river and saves the scorpion, which stings him in return. He asks, "Why did you do that? I just saved your life!" The scorpion replied, "I am a scorpion; what do you expect? It's my nature."

Even so, I believe the possibility of transformation is there for most people. In the meantime, sometimes it is appropriate and healthy to have a wall around your heart. It's not always a good idea for you to be defenseless. It may not be safe to do that. But at least we want to be able to let down our walls at home.

It takes a lot of energy to maintain that wall, to hold in and hold back our thoughts and feelings. Over time, this can lead to great suffering and illness. If you can't open up with your own wife or loved ones, then you have a problem. That doesn't mean you should always keep your heart open to everyone, because there are some mean people out there. At the same time, if you routinely come into contact with a difficult person, you may want to at least give him or her a chance to change. I find that if I can use good communication skills on my end, it often makes it easier for them to change-but not always. If it doesn't happen, then I might say, "Fin e, you stay in your corner; I will stay in mine."