Turning a new leaf…
TO ALL MY ACQUAINTANCES, BOTH FRIEND AND FOE ALIKE:
Having reached the ripe old age of 58, I recently found myself doing some meaningful soul-searching. A colourful life-most of it spent in the (often) neurotic world of chess— has seen me travel all over the world and meet tens of thousands of people from all walks of life. It is only natural that I have made a few enemies along the way. I admit to having a strong character with clear and unshakeable moral principles. I seldom back down and I refuse to compromise with those who have lesser values. I recognize that this is one of my faults. And I never forget the names of those who have done me wrong… My Irish genes, especially, mean that I there is nothing more enjoyable than a good, heated argument! I love it when others begin to lose their composure once they realize that they are backed into a corner and losing the argument…as their blood pressure rises and their faces get red, I can be relentless and provocative! When they sometimes curse and explode, I feel that I have won…Hey, I am only human! In anycase, now that I am 58 years and looking back on all of this, I have decided to let bygones be bygones. To move on. To forgive. I recognize that people are not perfect, and that I have no right to expect others to live up to the same high standards that I have. Recently a person I knew , and with whom I was not on speaking terms with for more than 10 years, passed away. We never got the chance to work out our differences. And now we never will. He could be just as stubborn and head strong as me! Neither of us was willing to make the first move at reconciliation. Reconciliation. I have thought a lot about this since his passing. With this in mind, I have decided to make the first step in this direction. I don’t want to repeat the same sad story of experiencing the passing of someone that I did not get along with. Life is too short! Someone has to be the first to reach out, and so if this has to be me then it will have to be. I accept this task; humbly , honestly, sincerely and responsibly. As the first step in the path of reconciliation, I am asking all of you who have had run ins with me in the past, who have impure thoughts of me or who simply don’t like me for what ever reason, to fill in the form below and send it back to me. It is important that you meet me half way! Just fill in your name in the ‘FROM’ space and take it from there. It should only take a minute or so…
I WILL ONLY ACCEPT APOLOGIES THAT ARE SINCERE!
