Walls and Bridges

I have had a bad habit of sometimes ending an argument with “I’m sorry but…” I then go on to explain why I felt I was right.  I watched a TV show the other day where one of the characters said that the words someone says before the word “but” really don’t count. In the show it was something like, “You don’t deserve this demotion, but you will no longer have the same security clearance”  My sister (L) hates the word “but”. She says her kids will say to her: “But Mom…” and it drives her crazy. She always responds with, “Do I look like a Butt Mom to you?” Which I think is hysterical.

So at church I was thinking about the word while talking to a friend. We were both waiting for our significant others to finish teaching Sunday school so we were just hanging out by the coffee and snacks. I mentioned the TV show and the idea about no words before the word “but” really meaning anything and he said he had heard that “but” builds walls- “and” builds bridges.

I really liked that. I told him I said “I’m sorry but… “ and he recommended that I say instead “I’m sorry and… “ because it would be much more productive. I thought it was a very smart thought AND I wanted to share it!! J