Forgiveness, don’t we all deserve it? Don’t we all need it?
Those who have dealt with the people that need forgiveness, the sinners of the world, in other words, will answer these questions by saying that some people are simply not worthy of such a gift… Others who have the deep roots of faith and maybe religion in their souls might quote a phrase from the Tripitaka, the Bible, the Quran, or a sage’s legacy, that hints to the fact that we should all forgive; for at a certain point, we will need it ourselves. Perhaps the quote would be something like: “Be the flower that gives its fragrance even to the hand that crushes it” –Ali ibn Abi Taleb. When the majority of people respond with: “Yeah, why not?”, that’s when I’ll ask if you actually do apply that theory: have you forgiven that person who was unkind to you at school? Have you forgiven that friend that let you down? Have you risen above and let the memory of someone’s painful words go?
Always remember that forgiveness isn’t just about forgetting and moving on as if nothing happened, perhaps it’s acknowledging the pain and knowing that it will only make you a better person; perhaps it’s simply knowing the right thing to do and doing it, while not taking payback or revenge into consideration; perhaps it’s by praying for those whose souls are black and white, in which the first color is more prominent than the latter, for the murders, for the manipulatives, for the liars... maybe even for the devil himself, thus replying to Mark Twain’s words: “But who prays for Satan? Who, in eighteen centuries, has had the common humanity to pray for the one sinner that needed it most?”
And truly, I really do not understand our need for New Year resolutions, or birthday resolutions…the way I see it, you have a new beginning with every breath, with every thought, with every pulse, for you’re starting a new second , a new minute , a new hour and a new day. So join me, let’s count to three and make a decision, a decision to forgive and rise above, a decision to let go and start fresh…forgive them all, they’re nothing but mere humans…
Forgiveness...by Ghadeer Shnawa