What do you do when you do something that hurts someone else? What do you do to fix or repair what you have done? More importantly, why did you do what you did in the first place?
 
In life, we are all going to have things happen to us that we wish did not occurred. That’s just life. Many of those things will be brought on by someone else.
 
Here is where the complexities of life come into play. Most of these incidents can be chalked up to accidents. The person who did what they did, did not really mean to do what they did to you. In other cases, however, sometimes people do things to intentionally hurt someone else. Of course, there are a million reasons for each action a person takes, but at the core of their being, I always question, “What kind of individual would intentionally do anything that hurts anyone?” Yet, those occurrences do happen.  
 
In your own life, have you ever hurt someone intentionally? If you truly chart your way through that life incidents, isn’t that a wrong thing to have done? What did it prove? That you have the power to hurt someone? If that is your life goal, don’t you think that desire should be reevaluated?
 
In your own life, have you ever hurt someone unintentionally? If you have, what did you do after that fact?
 
I know, throughout the many years of my own life, some people have hurt me. A few have even done what they did intentionally. Though I may have even understand their motivations, from a philosophic level, don’t you think it is only the lowest level of human being that would hurt anyone deliberately, no matter what their motivation?
 
Basically, hurting someone intentionally is based upon desire. Desire for power, desire for retribution, desire to hurt, desire for desire. Have you ever done that? And, what was the ultimate outcome? Yes, maybe you got over on that person. Yes, maybe you received what you wanted in that moment. But, in the long run of your life, what did it cost you? Most will find, once they have lived farther down their road of life, that what they did ultimately affected them negatively, and brought negative karma their direction, and ultimately a life that did not become all that it could have become.
 
On the other side of this issue, and the more common pattern of life, is that much of the time, when hurt or pain, or whatever other undesired act is instigated, it is done by accident.  Though some would say, “There is no such thing as an accident.” And, essentially that is most likely true. Nonetheless, what was done was not done with the intent to hurt. Then what?
 
What do you do when you have hurt someone, in some way, whether intentionally or not? What do you do to try to fix it?
 
Most likely, if you truly are a good human being, and you do actually care about life and humanity and all that is good and right, the first place you go to is to say, “I’m sorry.” I know that is my first means of apology. But, what does, “I’m sorry,” really mean? And, perhaps, better put, what does it accomplish? Yes, it is owning your responsibility in your action. But, what does it change? What can it change? And, if you do not do something to actually undo what you have done; whatever you have done—whatever damage you have created, lives on forever. Do you ever think about that? Do you even care?
 
I know myself, whenever I have done something to hurt someone, I feel terrible about it. I am just one of those people who possess the makeup to feel really terrible and hold a lot of guilt about that kind of stuff. But, feeling bad or guilty doesn’t change the action. Only action changes the action. And, this is where I believe many people fall short in life. When they have instigated something that has done damage to the life of someone else, even if they do say, “I’m sorry,” that is where it ends. They do nothing to undo or fix what they have unleashed. And, I get it, sometimes what you have done to hurt that someone else is not easy to fix. But, if you do not put a very conscious effort into trying, that means, you saying, “I’m sorry,” has no true meaning.

So, think about all of this the next time you hurt someone. Think about all of this next time someone hurts you. Saying, “I’m sorry,” means nothing, unless action is taken to fix what you/what they have done. Can you put your ego and your desires and all of that kind of negative stuff away and actually do what it takes to truly fix the hurt you’ve created?
 
If you can, good for you. If you can’t, what does that say about you?