Have you ever struggled to release an unpleasant memory? It might be an old resentment over a perceived wrong or abuse. Or it could be guilt for a regretted action or failure to act. Suffering for past mistakes, ours or someone else’s, can seem to follow us like an unwanted shadow. We can’t change the past, and yet we know we need to leave it behind.
I yearned truly to forgive all concerned, including myself, and move forward with freedom and grace.
When I married right out of high school, a rift took place with some family members, which strained our relationship over the next 22 years. When my husband passed on, I no longer had contact with these loved ones, but the hurt and pain of unresolved issues remained. There may have been mistakes on everyone’s part, but I felt particularly guilty for my own prideful, immature, and often less than loving reactions to perceived transgressions. Now it seemed the opportunity for healing was gone. Yet, I yearned truly to forgive all concerned, including myself, and move forward with freedom and grace.
