Portrait of An Apology

Look what I've done
This picture I've painted
It looks like my heart
Or what still remains

Convinced of the weight
Your interpretations
Are not what I see
I wish they could be

- Jars of Clay, Portrait of an Apology

Ever tried to do something that you believed is good, but it ends up exploding in your face? That happened to me quite a number of times. No matter how good my intentions might be, the way I execute it leave a lot to be desired.

Most of the time, I find myself asking where I went wrong. After all, did I not want something good to happen out of it? Why did it fall apart? Other times (most especially the most recent one), I know exactly where I went wrong, and I think this is worse between the two.

I made a mistake very recently. I thought I was doing something good - until now, I know that what I wanted to achieve is really all right, even if it involves a bit of self-sacrifice. A part of me knew that I might just end up hurting someone with what I planned to do, but I guess I ignored that little voice, because I had my eyes focused on my goal. It's a mindset that assassins would be proud of: forgetting one's emotions just to achieve an objective. When I saw how much damage I've caused, though, I was crushed, not just because I was already hurting because of doing something that's against my nature, but because I know I've hurt someone that's really important to me. I know that in the long run, what I'm trying to do is going to be good. It's to fulfill a vow I've made a number of times already. It doesn't lessen the fact that I hurt someone though, and that I'm hurting as well. This will sound melodramatic, but a hundred apologies are not be enough, because it will never erase the pain I've caused. I would probably have the same mindset when I enter this kind of situation again, but I hope and pray that I'll be more sensitive and gentler, instead of acting as though I were flailing or smashing someone with a huge mallet.

May you learn from this lesson, Melanie.