On a bright cheery morning as I scrolled through my social feeds, I came across a small post that was about changing the verbiage from “I am sorry” to “Thank You.” It went a little something like this:

“lately I’ve been replacing my “i’m sorry’s” with “thank you’s,” like instead of “sorry i’m late” i’ll say “thanks for waiting for me,” or instead of “sorry for being such a mess” i’ll say “thank you for loving me and caring about me unconditionally.” and it’s not only shifted the way i think and feel about myself, but also improved my relationships with others who now get to receive my gratitude instead of my negativity” **

Powerful.

Just so Powerful.

As I ruminated on this brief statement, I was brought to recall many, many times when I had apologized for something (or not apologized), but the words had rang hollow in my own ears and coming from my own mouth. And I had seen that they were received in the same way.

Inadequate.

Because the apology, the words “I am sorry” were not the correct words.

Yes, I was sorry that I had created whatever the situation was – being late, making a mess, being a mess, forgetting something, the list goes on….. but it was more than that, too. Something deeper. The words “I’m sorry” just couldn’t touch the place, the emotion, the true meaning of the message I was trying to convey. Language, was not sufficient. As it often is not.

Reading and meditating on this brief statement brought me to truth. To the true message. To the feeling that I was feeling all of those times but was not able to access.

Gratitude.

Gratitude that there was no anger, even if deserved. No frustration. No sighs of disappointment. Or even if they were, they were known to be deserved.

The feeling all around was a heavy one. The “I’m sorry” not true enough to lighten the exchange of emotion.

The statements “it won’t happen again” were well meaning and intentional, but also a promise that was likely to be broken. Bringing, in advance, more disappointment on all sides.

But this, these two tiny and powerful words, change everything.

Thank You.

Thank you for accepting me as me.

It is my hope that you take these words, these seeds, and drift them through your own life. Allow them to plant where they may. And grow forward in inspiration, something bright and bold and new. Sat Nam.

**{original author unknown, it came to me recycled through socials – if you know the author, please comment so credit can be attributed appropriately.}