A parable on the nature of gossip:
Farmers rejoice when the drought ends and rain finally comes. Travelers curse the muddy roads it creates. The same rain — completely different judgments, both determined by self-interest.
Gossip works the same way. It takes something real and warps it through each person’s lens. By the time it reaches the person it’s about, it’s barely recognizable.
The cost is enormous: bosses believe rumors and turn against their best employees. Parents accept gossip and estrange their children. Spouses trust it and dissolve marriages.
The only defense: live so clearly and consistently that the gap between your reputation and your actual character is too small for gossip to fit.