Magic word

Is it too late now to say sorry?

When Canadian singer and songwriter Justin Bieber released his song, “Is it too late to say sorry now” at the end of 2015, it became a chartbuster instantly.

It was quite natural. Because “sorry” seems to be the hardest word to pronounce, yet he was apologising so effortlessly.

The song reflects the fact. Everyone makes mistakes, but very few accept them. Many people think that saying sorry is humiliating. Often in such cases, pride and ego come in between. I have seen that such people think that apologising would make them look smaller and the other person would become superior.

Many times it also happens that people fear that the person would refuse to accept their apologies, thus they refuse to apologise. While at other times, people feel that if they ask for forgiveness, they might lose their powers.

Many people often think that saying sorry is a sign of weakness. They feel that someone says sorry because the other person is stronger and the enmity would be tough. But I feel that apologising is a sign of strength. It needs great courage to accept one’s mistake, which is a gift.

Saying sorry means you respect others’ feelings. Accepting mistakes makes you a better person and people trust you. And the best thing probably is that you get relief. You know that you have done the right thing.

I wonder why, even after knowing all these, people do not accept their mistakes.

On the other hand, there are a few courageous people in our midst who come forward and say sorry. They prefer to say sorry to the other person and patch up, without thinking much about who was at fault. 

Because saying sorry does not always mean that you are accepting the mistake, it shows that you respect the relationship.

Is it too late to say sorry now?

(Published in The Gulf Today on March 5, 2016)