How does Cole understand the consequences of his actions?t

This is a long process that Cole never begins to figure out until his second visit to the island. I think the Spirit Bear beating Cole to within an inch of his life started the process. Here was a force which Cole could not manipulate or fight. The humility he felt lying in the mud was so strong that he felt empathy for the little birds fallen from their nest. When Cole returns the second time, he begins to clear his mind. He does what Edwin and Garvey tell him to do and he begins to understand his place in the world. That is when Cole is able to understand what he had done to Peter.