Join The Ranks

I used to be so afraid of doing the wrong thing.

I still am, but now I know everyone does it eventually, if not every day.

Somehow I missed that particular truth for most of my life.

Imagine waiting all those years for perfection to catch up with me! It wasn't as if people hadn't tried to tell me. I just wasn't really listening. I thought it was just some sort of kindness; a reassurance that came out of pity rather than truth; that really intelligent, really good, really perfect people never made mistakes!

Now I know that to never make mistakes is first of all not realistic, but even worse it means that hundreds of opportunities are missed out of fear.

Of course there are times when mistakes are not acceptable. Always read the label on medicine bottles twice, drive safely, never take your eyes off the children and probably a few more I'm not thinking of right now. Being careless is not okay, but honest mistakes?

They are part of life and sometimes they even lead to new and wonderful discoveries. I've heard Ivory soap was one of these.

Now I ask questions! Sometimes I ask embarrassing questions, but I'd rather ask them than not know. Still I make mistakes, it seems to be part of life; a part that brings out the humanity in me; another one of those common denominators that comes with being human.

I admire people who are willing to admit, take responsibility for, and try to repair the damage their mistakes cause. I want to be in those ranks.