My Bad

I've learned that when folks are short and nasty towards you, it has absolutely nothing to do with you most of the time. When people are in their feelings for whatever reason, some take it out on others around them. So, I'm learning to be mindful of what others pour into the universe and not react quickly.

We all go through a lot on a day-to-day basis, but I've always been careful not to let anyone feel what I'm experiencing on a bad day for me. I'm not saying that I have always been good at that, but I sure don't become nasty with others because of my personal feelings.

All too often, I've witnessed a person being irrational toward another individual, and I've thought to myself, they must be having a bad day. Most times with me, I'm goofy, and I like making people laugh, and with that, you would never have known that I was balling my eyes out the whole night prior.

When we mess up at times, if you are a good person, you usually feel wrong about being short or rude towards someone for no apparent reason. What does feel good is when you apologize to a person when you know that you were wrong. You don't have to take everything out on everybody when you're going through something. Saying those two words, "I apologize," literally changes everything. Saying I'm sorry is a weight lifter for both you and the receiver. And after showing responsibility for your wrong actions, you both can go back to your regular routines because none of us are perfect. But how many people feel bad and apologize when they know they're wrong? Not many at all.

If a person doesn't say, " I'm sorry," those awkward feelings can linger on for years. Sometimes people do stuff to you and just come back and never address what they have done. I think at a certain point, that's a sign of disrespect. And for me, if you don't say sorry, then I know that you're not sorry, and I don't trust you anymore or feel the same about you.

Although it is uncomfortable for you and the person, those words and an explanation have to be said because, for me, I'll never forget it. But if we discuss what happened and it doesn't need to be a lengthy discussion, I will forget about it right then and move on. It makes me feel better, and it will make the other person feel better. In life, we make things more complicated than they are. It took me a long time to acknowledge my mistakes, but it made me feel like a better person when I did so.

Mistakes happen in life. It's a part of our existence, but the challenge is correcting them correctly. Sometimes we have to check ourselves to have better relationships with those we love or with strangers. Would you mind not coming around me if you're going to be deliberately unkind? Treat me as you would want others to treat you. And I will do likewise.