Conflict · 2026-11-02

The apology you didn’t get

They said "okay, I’m sorry, can we move on" — and something in you did not move.

A repair only lands if it touches the actual injury. "Sorry" closes a door; "sorry that I made you feel like you were making it up" opens the right one.

Two people can be trying to repair at the same time and still miss each other, because one is apologising for the event and the other is apologising for the meaning.

"Can we move on" is a bid to end the discomfort. It is not the same as a bid to end the hurt, and bodies can tell the difference even when words cannot.

This one has a number attached.

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