Sling it!
It’s safe to say that some things in life are easier than others. Like jumping into the deep end of the pool with little swimming experience and trying to make it to the other side. Signing up for a last minute marathon when you haven’t trained for it. Walking up to someone you like that is surrounded by people you know and asking them if they would like to go out with you. Standing in front of a large group of people and sharing something you’ve put a lot of work into. Or getting on that extremely large rollercoaster with the person you just started dating because you wanted to impress them even though you are terrified of rollercoasters. Unless it is an extreme phobia, it’s safe to say that all of these actions are easier to do than saying two simple words.
Saying, “I’m sorry” is probably one of the most difficult things we face in our everyday lives. 
If you are apologizing, that means a few things had to have happened. First, you made a mistake. Secondly, your mistake impacted someone else. Now the level of embarrassment does go up considerably depending on the relationship you have with that individual, if you accused them for any wrong doing as part of the mistake, and the impact level you cost them during this process. Now tie all that together and add how much time you allowed to pass after you realized your mistake before you did anything to correct it. That apology just got a whole lot harder.
We’ve all been there. We made a mistake. Our first reaction is to get angry and defensive if we get confronted about it. We do that because it is our natural instinct to protect ourselves. It’s that survivor instinct. The other reaction is to want to shrink down as small as you can and stick your head in the ground hoping that no one can see you, hear you, or find you. You are utterly ashamed.
After the mistake is made, many people in the wrong often defer back to a religious teaching and throw out the old proverbial saying that God teaches to forgive your trespasser. Some of these individuals are not even faith practitioners when resorting to this level of defense. The upside of someone saying this to someone they wronged is that the person means something to them. On the other hand, God does teach to forgive. So if you were the person wronged, forgive them. He doesn’t say they have to remain in your circle so they have the opportunity to do it again at a later time. It’s all relative to the impact cost that was endured after the mistake was made. If the person who was wronged lost big pieces of who they were and what they had, don’t expect them to remain in the same circle with you while moving forward. And honestly forgiving someone takes time, a lot of time depending on the circumstances. Sometimes it never happens and that’s ok.
So how do we apologize? That is the scenario that has played in your mind a million times over. Here’s the thing, there is no right way or perfect time for it. If you screwed someone over, you want to apologize as soon as possible. You want to be sincere. If someone is telling you the apology, they are not apologetic. There is a level of humility that can be seen and felt when apologizing. Apologize only once. Maybe twice if the mistake was severe. Apologizing frequently takes away from the meaning behind it. So does making the same mistake over and over again. Make sure you stand there if the other person has any choice words they want to tell you. That is part of the apology. Standing there and taking it so the other person has a chance to feel whole again is also part of it. And don’t expect to be forgiven and move forward with them. It’s their choice on which path they take after that. Hopefully everyone can move forward in a positive direction together. Stronger. That may not happen. Or they may just need time, like mending a fence.
Bring it!