"When death, the great reconciler, has come, it is never our tenderness that we repent of, but our severity"

This quote by George Eliot speaks to the idea that when death comes, we frequently regret the cruelty we have shown to others in life. We may have been too fast to judge, too extreme in our criticism, or too unforgiving in our actions. Death brings a sense of finality and a suggestion that we should have been more understanding and forgiving of others. We might have been too fast to anger or too sluggish to forgive, and death works as a pointer that we ought to have been more caring. Death is the excellent reconciler, and it is in death that we understand the value of tenderness and understanding. We might not be able to undo the harshness we have revealed, however we can gain from it and strive to be more understanding and forgiving in the future.