Respect, trust, confidence – these treasures are intertwined, inseparable – are the life-blood of all healthy relationships. They are the “fresh air” and sunshine and vitamins of friendships, be they romantic or professional or platonic, or anything in between. 

Once lost or defiled, respect, trust, and confidence are very difficult, but not impossible. to reclaim or rebuild. 

While there are endless ways relationships are ruined, where trust is broken and confidence is defiled, and respect has been lost, repair is a rather simple, but not an easy journey.

Repair begins with humility, acknowledgment and apology. 

These elements are required of all parties, not only the person who is regarded as the offender. The person who has broken trust requires the humility to acknowledge damaging actions and the courage to apologize in order to find repair and begin to restore respect. But, reconciliation and repair will be impossible if the offended lacks humility and is unwilling to enter discussions with the possibility of reconciliation in mind. 

It takes two (or more) to tangle and two (or more) to untangle if indeed untangling is desired.

Not all broken relationships have to be fixed, but if one that has caused you pain is going to be fixed, it will require humility and respect and trust and confidence to set things in motion – even if all these treasured and intertwined elements were once defiled.