The man in the hall said “Much of what I do is motivated by a desire to make up for the bad things I did in the past.” Many in the room stood up in the circle to show that they resonated strongly with what he’d said, that they too wanted to heal and let go of that part of themselves.
While we might not literally believe in a karmic scoreboard, it seems the thought can drive many of our actions. We want to offset our past mistakes with new deeds.
However, maybe we don’t need to do that. If we have reflected on the past, repented or decided to be a different person, now we are transformed.
That is more than enough.