No one is perfect. As human beings, it is engraved into our DNA to make mistakes. It is inevitable that at some point, you are going to hurt someone. I know I definitely have. With knowing that no one is perfect, why is it so hard to forgive people for the mistakes they've made?
Our pride sometimes stops us from forgiving those who hurt us. Why forgive someone who never apologized for what they did? I mean did they even realize how badly they scarred you? To be honest, maybe they didn't know they hurt you. It happens all the time. Some people believe that words are simply just words and that they have no effect on a human. I understand why you wouldn't want to forgive someone who never apologized to you. However, how are you going to heal with all that anger in your heart? By not forgiving someone, you bottle up all of those emotions. Holding grudges will do nothing for you, believe me. I held a grudge against a person for many years and during that time, I did not heal at all. This individual had hurt me in more ways than I can explain, so why would I forgive them?
Then I had this revelation. I was still living with and reliving that pain every day by not forgiving this person. I never got an apology, this person did not receive the justice I wanted them to receive, but still I knew at that moment I needed to forgive them, for myself. I was a prisoner to this person and the incident that occurred because I had denied them forgiveness. I chose to forgive them, and to this day, I don't even know if they know that. I began to heal from the hurt, and even though it is still there, it doesn't sting quite as much.
Set your pride aside, I know that's hard to do. If someone asks for your forgiveness, give it to them. Denying them that is hurtful. They will carry around what they did to you for the rest of their life, and it will haunt them. Some of you may want that. You may want them to feel the pain but rise above it. Become a better person by forgiving. After all, if you asked for forgiveness, wouldn't you want to be forgiven? I believe the strongest people are those who can forgive. It takes a great deal of will power to look at someone who hurt you and to tell them, "It is okay, I know you're sorry and I forgive you." That's strength and that's what everyone should strive to do, to become a better person.
