All of us, make mistakes when we are so dealing with others, of which, some of these mistakes are of the nature in which quite clearly an apology is warranted, and many of those that so need to apologize to the other person, actually do end up going ahead and doing that. Yet, not every apology is equal, and those making such apologies, know this for a certainty. For instance, when we say that we are sorry to someone, but our body language or our voice seems to express something that is the opposite of such sorrow, then that apology rings quite false. So too, those that qualify their apology, by blaming it mainly on some other agency, such as drinking, or anger, or frustration, aren’t really serving up a true apology, but rather are making more of an excuse for their ill behavior. Finally, all those that apologize, and somehow are able to believe that their mere apology without any subsequent correction action or even an honest attempt to make good on an action to help right that wrong, have the hollowest of apologies.
Those that are on the receiving end of an apology, while often appreciating that they have been apologized to, will often find that sincere apology or not, that mere words, do not heal well a deep wound. That shouldn’t be surprising to any of us, for our innate sense of justice, often cries out, that in sympathy to those that have been wronged or hurt, that they need something therefore more fulfilling than mere words to represent well a lasting and soothing balm. This thus signifies, that the person so providing a sincere apology, must not only freely admit to their wrong, but also must do so without equivocation or excuse, and further to the point, they then must go ahead and couple that apology with the type of action that proves their sincerity and provides therefore the foundation of why that apology represents something of lasting value, by their subsequent good actions, so taken.
Again, to err is human; so too, to correct that mistake is our imperative obligation that we must so attend to, so as to thereby make good for that which was wrong. Those then that desire to take shortcuts in regards to apologies by taking the easy way out, by thereby mouthing words that sound good or that seem appropriate, but don’t ever take the personal time for self-reflection, or to acknowledge that they have a duty to see that whatever ill that they have perpetuated, needs to be addressed in a forthright manner, haven’t taken the opportunity to learn from their mistake, or to become thereby a better person for having subsequently done the right thing. In life, there are going to invariably be regretful things that each of us does, that we can’t take back because the action has already occurred; but in which, we can thereby do the next best thing, which is to admit our wrong through our sincere apology, then determine that we will not repeat such, and finally to take positive and correction action to make good, to the degree that we can so do, to ameliorate the harm that we have done.