"Please write down a list of words that you consider to be game changing, words that have the power to completely change a situation".
The room went silent, and I sat still. I looked down at the blank page in front of me and thought about the words that really mean a lot to me. I thought about the situations I've been in where words have made so much difference -- where one word or phrase changed my emotional state completely.
The phrase "I'm sorry" came to mind after a short while. I sat quietly at my seat looking at the words and realized that there wasn't much else. The words, no matter the sincerity, always evoke a sense of understanding within me, a resolution of sorts, I suppose.
I've thought about this a lot -- this idea that there are words out there that, when said, have the power to completely change the situation. I think that "I'm sorry" is still one of the more powerful phrases out there, but the more I think about it the more it hits home about how subjective these types of words and phrases are. I'm sure that for some people an apology can be meaningless; for some people, words like "mother" or "hate" have a lot more power to change a situation. All of these things are dependent upon the cares and qualities of the persons involved. I'm pretty sure that the only reason why the phrase "I'm sorry" has so much power for me is because it is easy for me to forgive.
So, what about you?
2 comments:
Okay, so I'm going to give this some thought, and for me, "I'm sorry" has had a huge impact as well, but on first impression, I wonder how you feel about "I forgive you"? It's the obvious partner to "I'm sorry" but reverses roles. Like you, I feel like I forgive easily, but I used to have a really hard time admitting my own mistakes and asking for forgiveness.
context seems most important to this question. A situation has so many definitions, and every word has a different meaning in each situation. The relationship I have with the person I'm speaking with absolutely determines my response to their words.
a stranger insulting my mother is totally different than my best friend insulting her. or is it?
I like Joey's comment in correlation with yours.
Say what you mean, and mean what you say. How many people do you think do that? and would that affect the response to a phrase in question?
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