Peter Kraus Reflects on the End of His “Bachelorette” Journey: “I Am Overcome With Emotion”

Fans were shocked when Arie Luyendyk Jr. was announced as the next Bachelor, not only because it’s been so long since we’ve seen him in front of the cameras, but also because plenty of people were expecting Peter Kraus to be named as the new leading man. A few hours before the big reveal, Kraus tweeted a cryptic message that seemed to hint at regrets. Now he’s going on the record about how he feels in a lengthy post to Instagram.

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#tbt to the most incredible journey of this life time that has now officially come to an end today. As I sit here writing this, I struggle to hold back the tears as I am overcome with emotion one last time. First and foremost.. Rachel, there are so very many things that I've wished I could say to you since the day we parted ways in Spain, but for everyone's sake, I'll keep it short... You gave me a chance and all that I can say is thank you. I have a heart filled with love for you now and always and wish you nothing but the best in your life and love ahead. ABC, you saw something in me, but something held me back. You treated me with such love and kindness and showed me glimpses of a life I never once dreamed that I could have. I will be forever humbled and grateful and will always look back at these last 6 months with an ear to ear smile, knowing that this has truly been a very special life indeed. Upon leaving the @bacheloretteabc I was asked, "what did you learn about yourself during this process?" And at the time I naively said "nothing that I can think of." Now... looking back... I realize I learned one of the single greatest teachings of my life; When you let uncertainty or fear guide your decisions, you risk missing out on what could potentially be the greatest opportunity of a life time. So live dangerously, live without the fear of the unknown, and continue to live and love with a heart that is truly open to anything. #thankyou #lovealways

A post shared by Peter J Kraus (@peterkrauswi) on Sep 7, 2017 at 2:08pm PDT

“#tbt to the most incredible journey of this lifetime that has now officially come to an end today,” he captioned a photo of himself. “As I sit here writing this, I struggle to hold back the tears as I am overcome with emotion one last time. First and foremost… @therachlindsay , there are so very many things that I’ve wished I could say to you since the day we parted ways in Spain, but for everyone’s sake, I’ll keep it short… You gave me a chance and all that I can say is thank you. I have a heart filled with love for you now and always and wish you nothing but the best in your life and love ahead.”

He went on to praise the network, writing, “ABC, you saw something in me, but something held me back. You treated me with such love and kindness and showed me glimpses of a life I never once dreamed that I could have. I will be forever humbled and grateful and will always look back at these last 6 months with an ear to ear smile, knowing that this has truly been a very special life indeed.”

He then revealed what he’d learned through the experience — “one of the single greatest teachings” of his life. “When you let uncertainty or fear guide your decisions, you risk missing out on what could potentially be the greatest opportunity of a lifetime,” he wrote, echoing his cryptic tweet from the night before. “So live dangerously, live without the fear of the unknown, and continue to live and love with a heart that is truly open to anything. #thankyou #lovealways.”

Do you still want to see Peter Kraus as a future Bachelor? Let us know @BritandCo!

(Photo via ABC/Craig Sjodin)