Virgil, Aeneid XII.931

Melphi speaks

Equidem merui nec deprecor,

The priest translates

«I have indeed deserved it, and I do not beg to be spared,»

And interprets

This verse speaks to you about responsibility. Perhaps you have made a mistake, small or large, in love, in your family, at work, and now you are bearing the consequences. You feel guilty and perhaps would like to justify yourself, explain, find excuses. Melphi suggests another way: to acknowledge simply what you have done, without pleading and without defending yourself at all costs. Admitting a fault with dignity does not make you weaker; in fact it often opens the heart of the person in front of you. Be careful, though, not to turn admission into self-punishment: someone who owns a mistake still has the right to ask something for the people they love.

The historical translations

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