There are times when I wish I could rewind the unkind things I have said. The hurtful sentences that I didn’t mean to let slip out of my mouth, no less my mind. The times in which I have engaged in thoughtless gossip about someone I love without even realizing what I was doing. In retrospect, these are the moments in which I give great thanks for grace, for the shame involved for me with being unkind to others burdens my heart in a capacity that is difficult to explain.
Unfortunately, when we are unkind, we can’t just rewind. I wish we could. Instead, the only thing we can do is to recommit ourselves to loving-kindness in all that we do. I think that perhaps sometimes we need to be reminded of the hurtful potential that lies within our own words and actions in order to stay committed wholeheartedly to clothing ourselves in constant compassion towards others. 19th century novelist George Sand gives us wisdom in how to preserve the gift of kindness within ourselves in what she once wrote: “Guard well within yourself that treasure, kindness. Know how to give without hesitation, how to lose without regret, how to acquire without meanness.”
Kindness is a treasure within ourselves that must be guarded. Let your guard down, and inevitably, someone who doesn’t deserve to get hurt will. Guard your treasure dearly and know that it is never too late to give your your kindness without hesitation.
Forget injuries, never forget kindnesses. -Confucius