How to tell beauty from danger

Had I been able to do as planned, I could have missed a beautiful flower. This flower.

The wellness company I used to work for extolled the virtues of a brisk walk each day -- benefiting the mind and body. So yesterday I had hoped I could put in a quick mile walk. My body refused. Persistent bodily aches and pains prevented me from walking briskly.

So I hobbled along, determined to get a few steps in. And I had a choice to make about my attitude. I could complain about the situation that precipitated my pain and stiffness. I could have had a personal pity party. I could have been jealous of the group of able-bodied individuals who sped past me.

Instead, I chose to look for beauty along my route. Here's what I noticed:

• fields of grain shimmering like gold in the evening sun

• dandelions ready to release 100 wishes in the wind

• lacy flowers

• hungry honeybees

• and pretty purple and white flowers

I can't recall ever seeing this particular flower before. I looked at the intricacies of the flower, and snapped a picture so I could try to identify it. Google University says it's a variety of Queen Anne's Lace. Where I grew up, Queen Anne's Lace was only white. What a delightful surprise! Poet W.B. Yeats was right. He wrote:

The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.

The world is, indeed, filled with beauty. And that includes people.

Sadly, some flowers have deadly impostors. They look very similar to a harmless, even beneficial plant, like Queen Anne's Lace. In this case, there are two deadly look-a-likes: Poison Hemlock and Fool's Parsley.

And that got me thinking about people who are disingenuous. Posers. Fakes. Maybe it's a neighbor. Someone at your office. A Tinder match. A Facebook profile. A classmate. A relative. Or a member of your church.

Sometimes posers just inconvenience you. But they can also be deadly to your body, mind, or soul.

I didn't pick the pretty flower because I had heard it is easily confused with a harmful one. But you can't always "swipe left" in life. We need connection with others. Here are some centuries-old ways you can tell if someone is out to do you harm:

1. It's all about them. They love themselves more than anything or anyone else.

2. They care about money way too much -- to the point of being stingy and greedy.

3. They are braggarts. Their pride outpaces their accomplishments.

4. They are abusive: verbally belittling or emotionally controlling or physically harming others.

5. They feel the world owes them. They are takers -- not givers. And then they do receive a kindness or a gift, they are not grateful.

6. They hold grudges. They will not forgive.

7. They will not admit any wrong.

8. They are conniving, underhanded, and deceitful. In some cases, they will take credit for the accomplishments of others. In other cases, they sabotage the efforts of others. They lie about others.

9. They are unkind. Perhaps even cruel. They delight in pointing out mistakes of others.

10. They are disrespectful of young and old and in-between.

11. They are never satisfied but are always looking for the next thrill.

12. They make fun of those who do good, the weak, and the disadvantaged.

It's good to know what to watch out for in a dangerous plant and a dangerous person. But it's also a good idea to look for the the beautiful things in life, and the things that are of good report. That's also a biblical principle that you can count on to bring you peace and joy. Like King Solomon said:

Whoever seeks good finds favor, but evil comes to one who searches for it.

Scripture: 2 Timothy 3: 1-5; Proverbs 11:27