Reflections

In some families, please is described as the magic word.   In our house, however, it was sorry.   ~Margaret Laurence Etymologically, to be “sorry” is to be filled with sorrow or pain, from the Old Frisian word for pain, sar .   “I am sorry” is said to express sorrow about any state of affairs that causes grief or upset- from a tragic situation that deeply distresses myself or others to one that merely causes a passing discomfort.   I can be sorry that so many people died in the earthquake as well as sorry that it’s raining outside.   Because it is only as deep or superficial as the feeling it triggers, the degree to which we feel sorrow can vary considerably from person to person and situation to situation.   An expression of sorrow is also used to convey sympathy or compassion.   In times of suffering, saying “I’m sorry” is sometimes the only thing we can offer by way of an empathic response to another person’s distress. ...