Making Amends

Last updated on: April 6, 2012 at 7:15 am by JBW

Making Amends 2012-04-06T07:15:05-05:00 JBW

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My friend George, who runs a substantial company, received a call last week from a former employee he hadn’t seen in thirty five years, right out of the blue.

“What did he want to talk to you about?” I asked.

My friend shrugged his shoulders. The last time they spoke, George had fired him for stealing petty cash from the office till, and he gave him a good talking-to. There were “character issues,” is how George put it.

“I bet it has something to do with me firing him,” he guessed.

“Maybe he wants to thank you?” We both cracked up laughing.

They made arrangements for a visit, and when he arrived, this gentleman handed George $100.

“I know it’s been a long time,” he said, “but I want to make amends for what I did back then. I know it was wrong.”

George accepted the money, along with the apology, and they both agreed he would give it to a charity.

Wow. Thirty Five years later, to track someone down, to pick up the phone and make a call to what must be an intimidating executive who surely thought you were an ass, to set an appointment, and then to drive 45 minutes in your car, to scarf up one hundred dollars, and hand it over? And – this part kills me – to own up to it, and say you’re sorry?

Such reconcilatory resolve. Such redemption initiative.

What was going on with this guy, I wondered. Was he going through therapy? Did this incident haunt him the rest of his life? We all make mistakes, for goodness sake. Was he unable to grow to the next stage of his spiritual development until he took care of this?

I don’t know, but he sure has me thinking about all the stupid things I’ve done and tried to forget.

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