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The Stages of an Inclusive Apology
The Stages of an Inclusive Apology
I had an interesting experience last year.
I met with my younger brother two day before Christmas and we sat around talking about old times. I am 65 and he is 62.
I guess we were pretty much normal. Cause we’d get into scuffles sometimes and because I was older, taller and a good runner, I would plan the last push or shove and then take off running and he could never catch me. This happened more times that I want to remember.
Well, at that meeting two days before Christmas, he said something that caught me off guard. He said, “You have never apologized - for doing that to me.”
I quickly apologized and we dropped what we were talking about.
Later that night as I was preparing to go to bed, somebody from the spirit world spoke to me.
Very calm, but direct I heard,
“You apologized to your brother because you were ‘ask to’ - now you need to do it because you truly ‘want to’.”
Two days later, I saw him at a Christmas gathering, I pulled him aside, a reiterated the above experience and looked him in the eye and truly apologized to him.
I also discussed with him that an apology should be accompanied with these (3) elements.
The first…Admit that I was wrong.
I find that it is best to put a NAME on what I did.
The second…Acknowledge that I have hurt them.
I find that it is best to put a NAME on how I think I have hurt them.
The third…Ask what I can do to remedy and fix any rift.
Since then, other names and faces of individuals have come to me.
I have made every attempt that I can to contact these folks and write letters, make phone calls, write e-mails, and of course the best is face to face contact.
But what of those - where I found that it was impossible to find or they are deceased.
Again, the spirit world let me know… that I was to prepare the apology the very same as if they were standing in front of me…and then send it to them.
God is not limited to time and space as we are.
When I see these folks again…whenever,… wherever it is…my apology will be there ahead of me. And the time of reconciliation will be ‘Oh so sweet’.
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