Hello! 

I do agree with that assessment. I kept the phrase to "you", as I didn't want to be too invasive on her dialogue and her ownership of the phrase. "The things you say to people" is a general truism, and does imply that the woman is referring to a universal truth that everyone can relate to: words hurt, and everyone knows it. That's also why I changed the verb to the present tense: it remains a truth today, and thus the verb is still in the present. 

If, however, you want the woman to take RESPONSIBILITY for the actions, then "The things I've said to people" is appropriate and should be given in the past tense. I do suspect that this is what the woman was trying to say: she PERSONALLY hurts and regrets her specific actions. Either way the phrase works in the dialogue as either A) a life observation from an elder, or B) a specific lament from that person's past. 

Hopefully this helps!