A Handcuffed Life

by Suada 

Mistakes are something that everyone has. They are part of life. Mistakes are how we learn. Nobody has ever lived a life where they never made one mistake it’s simply impossible. Some may be more serious than others, but in the end, they are all errors and nothing more. That rolling grass hill, the sun shining above, little bluebirds are chirping. You walk along that bubbling stream with your best friend. You turn to say something, open your mouth, it is too late. It just slipped out. You said something you didn’t mean to say. All of the grass dies, clouds cover the sky, the birds scatter, the stream dies out. You yell at yourself. Why did you have to say that? Emotions are spinning out of control. Anger, fear, embarrassment, sadness regret. You made a mistake.  

You blink; you are running, panting, your heart pounding in your ears. A ragged breath in your ears, your legs about to collapse but you keep going. The phone is clutched in your hands. You took it. Stole it. Why? It just happened. Now what? You don’t know it was a simple mistake. 

Life is like a seesaw. You make a mistake and your seesaw will tip. If it just tips a little you will fall off. You will be handcuffed to the ground, unable to get up. As you make more and more mistakes, they will roll off you in waves, your handcuffs will become stronger and stronger. Just reach over, inches away, the keys laying, shining, untouched. Where did you start off? Where was your family? At the top of the seesaw? At the bottom? Either way, you can fall. Fall and forever be handcuffed to earth. 

I believe that everyone makes mistakes, and everyone should learn from these mistakes. Mistakes should be a positive experience, not a negative one. You learn from your mistakes to not make them again. Your mistake is a gift, not a weight. Everyone deserves a second chance, a chance to learn. As a community, we need to support each other and help each other through hard times. When we make mistakes, we want people to forgive us. We want a second chance. Once someone else makes the mistake we want to punish them. We cannot have that double standard. Our mistakes are our learning tools.