Hello Readers,
There are people who would never dream of stooping so low as to apologise for anything because they see saying ‘sorry’ as a sign of weakness, but in actual fact, it’s a sign of great strength of character and humility where another person’s feeling is taken into consideration. When you hold a grudge, you want someone’s else’s sorrow to reflect your level of hurt, but the two rarely meet. Sorry means you feel the depth of other people’s pain and having the guts to say it means that you take a share of it. It’s a hole refilled, a debt repaid and a good heart will not settle until things are set right. Sorry does not take things back, it pushes everything forward because it bridges a gap. Sorry is a sacrament, it’s an offering, it’s a gift. Apologising doesn’t mean you are necessarily wrong and the other person is right, it just means that you value the relationship more than your ego.
How many families or friends do you know that refuse to talk to one another for years after an argument just because neither side wants to be the first to let go of their pride and offer an olive branch? We are rapidly reaching a time when showing emotional vulnerability can be viewed as a positive rather than a negative quality. People are becoming more and more aware of ideas such as empathy and sensitivity and we are being encouraged to talk about our feelings , to seek help and make an effort to connect with others. Gone are the days of keeping everything bottled up inside to suffer alone. As we move forwards, grow and develop emotional intelligence and maturity, it is vital to acquire the ability to recognise our own mistakes and be accountable for our behaviour. Nobody is perfect and each and every one of us will do something at one time or another to hurt another person, even unintentionally. The difference lies in acknowledging that we have done something wrong and do the right thing to rectify our mistake. Placing the blame on someone else is easy. Making excuses and skirting around the subject is not a sign of someone showing a magnanimous heart. This is where humility comes in. Can you honestly look at yourself in the mirror and admit that perhaps something was partly your fault? Can you take personal responsibility? People who refuse to apologise or even address what was going on because neither wanted to be the one to ‘give in’. It develops into a game of silently trying to prove who was better and innocent people end up feeling dreadfully hurt all because of ‘pride’.
Learning to apologise is the first and most important step in the healing process. Not only does it show the recipient that you acknowledge their right to feel hurt, but it opens the way to forgiveness. An apology cannot undo what has been done, but it can help to ease the pain and tension of the aftermath. It gives hope for rebuilding and puts value on the relationship rather than the individuals pride.
Often those two simple words are worth more than a lifetime of excuses and explanations. In this life, when you deny someone an apology, you will remember it at a time when you beg forgiveness.
Always choose the path of humility, choose the path of healing and above all, choose love above pride.
Until Next Week,
Love and Light,
Linda and The Lulas xxx
