To Err is to Learn

I watched this video yesterday about what it means to be wrong and it inspired me.

Today I found myself in that position. In the wrong. Perhaps the video subconsciously jump-started that sense of awareness in me but I realised that I had made an error in judgment. I kicked myself for quite a while, knowing that I should have known better. I should have thought things out and realised that impulses are not always a good thing. But then I stopped myself then and there and said that I am not one to use the words "should have". It is done. There is no use dwelling on it. I say this as the consequences stare me in the face. But I look back at them and acknowledge their presence despite the ill feeling that chases me. Come what may I will deal with it. And when it is over, I will learn a valuable lesson and it will make me a richer person.

Now don't get me wrong, this thing that I did is not serious enough to cause me ulcers or to lose sleep. Just a little mistake that can easily be rectified but which if I had chosen to continue with would probably have cost me more as I went along. Yet I still cannot let go of this nagging feeling in the gut of my stomach that makes me ill thinking of the consequences that I have yet to face. It stays with me, there, like dead weight at the back of my mind, like a shadow that just hangs over my head and does not go away. I know that I will be able to breathe easier once it is all over but despite this I tell myself to stop dwelling. Things could have been much worse and I caught it in time, like a disease that is caught in the early stages and now is time to administer a slightly painful remedy.  In retrospect it is a good thing that I did realise this now and choose to stop, think and decide. This had already given me a valuable lesson: the importance of self-evaluation in anything one does.

Along with the fact that one should just do it, grasp the moment or the opportunity and let your creativity loose, there is also the importance of stopping every now and then to evaluate the situation. To reflect and check whether one is indeed going down the right path. To look ahead and see whether there are any obstacles or potential hazards that one should try and avoid now. And to decide whether to continue down that path or not.

To err is truly to learn and it provides an opportunity to change ways and capitalise on alternatives. It also gives the opportunity to let go of those things that you might end up chasing for nothing and to save potentially wasted time and effort. Above all, for that I am grateful.