Say 'sorry' when you need to - Life skills for kids (and some adults)
Sometimes we do things or say something that can hurt other. It does not mean you can just leave it and hope it gets better. We need to ask forgiveness and say we are sorry. This can be very difficult sometimes.
To say you are sorry about something that you said or did means that you apologize. You are telling the other person that you did not want to hurt them or that you understand that you did something wrong and would like to make it right.
Some people use the words "I'm sorry" a lot and very easy without even thinking about it. They are not really sorry and they just say it so that others will leave them alone, that is not right and serves not purpose.
Only when you really mean it and actually show that you are sorry or want to do something to make it better, then it will mean something.
When you apologize in a caring way, you can feel good because you are trying to make things right again.
There is no specific way in which you have to apologize, but saying sorry and meaning it and trying not to do it again, will be the right way to do it and also make the other person feel better.
If we apologize because we had a fight with somebody, they will sometimes also apologize to you because it also upset them.
Sometimes we need to be the 'bigger man' and apologize first in order for a fight to stop and sort out a problem. If you know that you have done something wrong or you have hurt somebodies feelings, it is the right thing to do. It shows that you do not only have decency, but also care about others.
Kids might need to apologize if they hurt or teased someone or lost something that belonged to someone else. They might need to apologize if they broke something (even by accident — oops!), or if they did something they knew was wrong — like telling a lie or breaking a rule on purpose. Maybe they did something their parent told them not to do, or maybe they didn't do something they were supposed to do.
It is not only kids that need to apologize. Adults also make mistakes or hurt other people's feelings or do the wrong thing, so not matter what age you are, if you did something wrong, you need to feel sorry and apologize.
Nobody is perfect, we all make mistakes, but we need to learn from it.
It can happen that you can get very angry with another person or situation. We all get angry sometimes and that is a normal emotion. You do not need to apologize because you are angry or upset, but it happens that once you are angry, you start shouting or saying mean things and then you can hurt someone's feeling. For this you need to apologize and next time when you get angry, you can rather tell the person why you are upset, not attack them with your words.
It is always the right thing to apologize if you feel sorry about something but it can be 'not enough' sometimes. It can be easy words to say, but you need to also say that you will try better next time, and mean it. Not all people will just forgive you because you said 'sorry', sometimes it can take some time and you will most probably have to gain their trust again and show them that you meant what you said.
If somebody apologizes to you but you know they did not mean it, or they keep on being mean to you and not showing you that they want to change, you will be better off not to have that person in your life anymore....
To say the words "I am sorry" can be very easy, but to mean it and actually show it, is a totally different thing.
Make sure that those are not only words to you, but words that really means something when you use it...
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My grandson used to behave anyway he liked and his ''go to comment was an immediate, 'I'm sorry.'
His parents eventually got him to realise that his initial behaviour had to be modified. As a teenager he doesn't do it any more and his 'sorry' is meaningful.
we never stop learning.
Thank you for an interesting post.