I have realised that when I am annoyed with someone, if they apologise to me, I feel as though I have no right to continue to be annoyed. I was in this situation today, someone apologised about a disagreement that took place and I find that I still feel annoyed and their apology does not sit well with me. Usually I would tell myself that I am being silly and I need to move on, but now that I am more in tune with myself and my intuition, I am happy to accept the apology but still allow myself the space to process the situation and decide how I would like to proceed.
Making a conscious decision of how I would like to proceed and when, means that I am being mindful of the decision that I am making and not simply reacting to their apology. I appreciate when someone takes the time to reflect on their behaviour and they decide to apologize as a result, but an apology does not mean that we have to jump back in to where we left off. I have also noticed that I rush into going back and being friends because I do not want the person to become annoyed with me and feel like I am being too demanding. I can now see that a lot of this is me thinking for someone else and also projecting on them.
Taking a step back and being mindful is always going to be beneficial to me in the long run and I am glad that I have made this observation. How do you deal with apologies? Do you allow yourself the time to process the incident or do you feel obliged to wipe the slate clean and jump right back in? It would be great to hear your thoughts?
The Anonymous Golden Child 