For a while now I have been making a distinction in my thinking between regret, which I tend to see as things I wish had gone differently in the past but that ultimately didn't shake my spirit, and remorse, which I tend to see as a deeper stirring in my spirit that moves me to learn and to wish and strive to do things differently in the future. My regrets are not always personal or about my personhood. I sometimes regret that the day was rainy when a picnic was planned, or when I have a miscommunication with a coworker. Many times I can shake regrets off with some light banter and an afternoon snack. My remorse is often more personal and deeply about my personhood. I have remorse if I sense that I didn't act in my values in a situation. For me, it takes kindness, love, and peace to move forward from remorse. This distinction has helped me not sweat the small stuff, while committing to working on myself. What do the words regret and remorse mean to you?
[image description: Three hearts stand on and walk across block letters forming the word REMORSE. The hearts are looking down at the word REMORSE where three other words in cursive appear inside the block letters: Kindness, Love, Peace. Text reads, "May we integrate and reconcile."]
RSS Feed
