In the past couple years, I have been faced with challenges that have required me to become aware of the person I was and how my actions affected not only others, but myself. One of the conclusions I came to in my quest to reinvent my character and the person I wanted to present myself to the public was that the power of forgiveness appears lost. It does not matter if you are faithful or not; forgiveness is needed for everyone. It seems to me that we see in black and white, with no room for interpretation. From what I have observed, we get too caught up in our own endeavors that there is not much left for taking others’ perspectives. I eventually found myself in this category, and wanted to be unforgiving to others because I was hurt, and I thought this gave me power, something I thought would satisfy. At no specific point, I eventually realized it did not have an affect on others; they didn’t care the way I wanted them to. It only degraded my character and left me in a bitter state.

Even if you were the one that was wronged, it is important to consider the other person’s background and question what you would have realistically done if the roles were flipped. It is easy to imagine that we would always do or say the right thing, and the other party may never admit or concede to what had been done, but forgiveness gives you an opportunity to let the negative aspects go, and focus on the things that really matter. It does not require you to be friends with someone, or even talk to them, but allows you to be at peace and promote personal integrity.