I used to think I was a bad person. Now I know I just made bad decisions.
A man I respect said that there are things he’s done and seen that he’ll never tell a soul, things that he’ll take to his grave. I have a few of those, too.
But that doesn’t mean I’m going to hold myself down with them. I wrote a while ago about forgiving myself, and I have. In that regard, I’m weightless and I’m better for it.
The idea of forgiveness seems to be all over the place right now. It must be something a lot of people need, be it forgiving someone who wronged them or forgiving themselves for wrongdoing.
That same man explained that, in either case, holding on to it isn’t hurting anyone but yourself. How many grudges have been held against people who didn’t even know there was still an issue? How many sleepless nights have been had hoping to receive forgiveness from someone who had already let it go?
If someone comes to you and asks for forgiveness, forgive them and move on. If you’ve gone to someone and asked for forgiveness and they forgave you, forgive yourself and move on.
I’ve been on both sides, and letting go is so much better. Neither one is easy, but it’s worth working towards.
You could be better at it than you thought. Who knows?
