I Believe in Second Chances

     A lot of people believe that a chance lost is lost forever. They make it seem like the mistakes you make in life are carved into stone, forever there for the rest of the world to see. There's just an inclination ever present in human nature that pin-points and demoralizes those who make mistakes – oh the irony. It's funny how the human population tries so hard to focus on people's mistakes, as if chastising those at fault will make the world a better place. Just a possible in-depth observation, but I'm pretty sure that everyone makes mistakes. Everyone on the face of the planet is prone to making mistakes, because it's just in our human nature – our innate, complex, sometimes hypocritical nature – to make errors. That's why I like to think that the mistakes you make in life are written in pencil on a piece of paper; there are many ways to fix or remove a mistake. You can erase it, you can mend it, or you can just crumple and throw the piece of paper away if that's what you need to do. Mistakes might be in the past, but there are always ways to mend them; this is why I believe in second chances.

     I have had my fair share of mistakes, a lot of which I am not proud of. I have done things I wish I could have taken back and erased from people's memories, but we all know that idea is out the window. When I was old enough to think for myself and take into account how I affected other people, I realized that others condemned me for the mistakes that I made. At first, it was understandable; I did something wrong and therefore must face the consequences. However, as time went by and every little mistake I made was documented and openly criticized, I got sick of it. I was just as human as my condemners; I was just as prone to making mistakes as the people who criticized me. Why was I being subjected to this treatment? They had just as much reason to hide in the corners for their mistakes – their innumerable, painstakingly obvious mistakes – so how is it that I, out of all the people in the world, was treated so horribly for my mistakes? It was my realization of hypocrisy in its rawest nature and I looked for a solution to minimize it.

      This is when I discovered second chances. Well, I wouldn't say “discovered,” but I finally realized the degree of importance that they had in society and the amount of relevance it had to my life. Second chances mend relationships, create harmony, and teach forgiveness and acceptance. Mistakes are important in our lives and second chances are too; they are two parts of the never ending universal cycle of learning. The saying, “We learn from our mistakes” holds far too much relevance to be ignored or countered – there's a reason why it is repeated over and over again in inspirational movies and parent lectures. And you know what else? With learning, comes opportunities, and with opportunities, comes growth. Second chances give people the chance to learn from their wrongs, fix what is broken, and grow from that experience.  How else can you know if someone has changed for the better without giving them the chance too?