Fault, is it mine?

Fault can be a trigger word for people. A word that stains you with guilt with even the mention of it. A word that won’t let you go, hold you down and imprisons you where you know you don’t belong but fear you can’t escape.

I have learned to look at fault differently. If some result is someone else’s fault, I am completely helpless to affect change. If it is someone else’s fault, they are the only one who can fix it. I am left alone and helpless, unable to make a difference except to make the other person see their fault.

When something is my fault, that means I can fix it. When it is my fault, I can do something about it. I am left in a place of reflection and action. I am free to cause change and free to make the difference that I wish was in the world.

Fault is a comforting word for me. It means that I have an opportunity to do better, to be better, to create better next time.