Promises, Promises, Promises

Promises, to some they are as sacred as a blood oath, to others, not worth the paper they clean their nether regions with. Through out my life, my stance on this issue has been rather firm. For me, a promise is something that is taken very seriously. I never make a promise I don't think I can keep, and I try to never to break a promise that I make. If I do break a promise, I feel tremendous guilt, and apologize, usually until blue in the face.

Naturally, when someone makes a promise to me, I automatically assume they will take it as seriously as I do, and keep their word. These days, like our sense of humor, the definition of what a promise means, seems to vary from person to person. So, When a promise that is made to me by another person is broken, of course, I get rather upset. Even more so, when the person that broke the promise shows no remorse at all.

Am I justified for getting upset? That seems to be a matter of opinion. Personally, I feel very justified in getting upset, even exchanging a few heated words if the situation calls for it. However, how upset I get will depend on the nature of the promise. Something like, "I promise I'll lend you my copy of that movie so you can see it", then never actually getting the copy, upsetting, but not really a big deal. Although, something like "I promise not to snake your girlfriend behind your back", then go and sleep with her, big deal. Don't go reading too far into those examples, because they are just that, examples.

I guess what I'm getting at is, if you make a promise, make it because you intend to be true to your word and keep that promise. If you don't intend to keep the promise, don't make it. A promise is not a tool to get what you want, and not something to honor only if you feel like it or it suits you. The more people are faithful to one another, and are more honorable, the better things will be.