Has someone done you wrong, hurt you, and your heart filled with resentment? Have you hurt someone and you wish and ache for forgives? It is a part of human nature that we hurt the people we love. In our day to day lives, people hurt our feelings, and we do the same to others, sometimes, unknowingly, knowingly, and purposely. We have our own opinions, and our emotions so delicate we attack, and the drama continues. We walk around, with rage, resentment, and in pain without resolution. I like to believe we hurt others by mistake, and misunderstanding plays a big part that leads to hurtful situations. We react without thinking. When we realize we were wrong, it is too late. We hurt our parents, family members, relatives, friends, and even strangers. If we have the power to fix it, why not at least try?
I grow up believing that my mother didn’t love me. It was a misunderstanding that led me to a different path. My mistakes, my actions hurt my parents, siblings, and my child. It took me a long time to realize how much my parents have loved me, especially my mother. I carried a lot of guilt and regrets into my adulthood. I wanted to set things right with my mother and to reach out to my siblings, who didn’t care much about me. But it needed strength, to accept I was wrong, to be vulnerable, and to set aside my self-esteem.
One day, when I was saying goodbye to my mother, I said, “please forgive me, Mom, for all the heartache I had given you as a teenager, and ever doubting your love for me.” I was crying, and we were hugging, she said, “there’s nothing to forgive, you are my daughter, and I love you,” she said, with tears in her eyes. I saw pride and joy in her face. I knew then that I had done the right thing. In one breath, she had taken my guilt away and had set me free. It filled my heart with love and satisfaction. Today I have no regrets. Thanks to my mother, she showed me how good it feels to be forgiven and forgive. The gift of forgiveness, and to recognize the precious unconditional love of a mother is redemption.
Since that day, I continued my journey of forgiveness, breaking down the walls of anger, revenge, and hate that surrounded my heart, I forgave those that hurt me, accepted them into my life, built new relationships. It feels good to have no fear, anger, or the need for revenge.
I know a father who overlived his son, regrets never telling his son how much he loved him or asked forgiveness for the way he had treated him as a child. Can you imagine the emotional pain he suffers for not making things right by his son? You never want to be in that situation, to live with regret, what-ifs.
Don’t wait for tomorrow to set things right, tomorrow may never come, yesterday is gone forever, today, now is all you have. So, gather up your strength, let go of resentment, forgive those that do you wrong, and ask for forgiveness from those you have hurt, even if they are at fault. Put your self-esteem aside, gather your courage, and tell them you love them, forgive them, and ask for forgiveness. Your heart will be at ease, mind free, and peaceful.
Thank you for reading,
Bea