It was summertime. Loud talk and laughter floated through our apartment’s open windows and down to the street. Guests continued to arrive for hours — neighbors and old friends, my husband’s coworkers and their mates, all the people we liked best.

When the door opened and a beautifully dressed Hispanic couple stood there smiling, holding a small gift, I stared for a moment. I called over my shoulder, “Honey, come say hi.” My husband moved to greet the charming couple, welcoming them in. He doesn’t know who they are, either, I thought.

For an hour I moved to each of my guests, casually asking if they knew who’d invited the pair. No one knew them. Uneasy, I approached the couple, who were laughing and talking with one of our neighbors, and waited until the woman noticed me. She touched the man’s arm and they both looked at me expectantly, moving closer together as the other guest wandered off.

Have you ruined Valentine’s Day yet? Give it time.

You forgot an important date. You said something you shouldn’t have said (aloud). You butt-dialed someone really inappropriate. You got over-the-top angry over a trifle. Now somebody’s hurt or angry, and you’re to blame.

Hey, it happens to all of us. We say or do something we regret. We feel a prick of guilt, a whisper of remorse. We know we should face what we’ve done and try to make things right with the person we hurt. In fact, there’s usually a do-over window when we can go back and set things right. Yet, whether out of shame or ignorance, we let those moments pass. Then we’re left with our errors intact, and only a cringe-worthy memory to show for it.

In my years as a writer and editor, I’ve learned to accept the human need to revise. If our intentions don’t come out right the first time, we can almost always go back and fix it. Of course, I’m not just talking about the written word.