I Hope You Allow Yourself To Forgive
By Mariam Zaher
I hope you allow yourself to forgive, repeatedly and relentlessly. Allow yourself the capacity to hold no grudge. You have that power within you; it just takes strength and crags of courage to set that power free.
I hope you’re brave enough to do that.
I hope you forgive those who didn’t mean to hurt you and more vitally, I hope you forgive those who did mean to hurt you. I hope you forgive those who deliberately and consistently try to rip your world apart. Forgive them because their world is far worse than they’ve ever tried to make yours. Forgive them and try to find it within yourself to pray for them; they need that.
I hope you forgive in spite of the fact that some will never deserve your forgiveness. Forgive in spite of the fact that they’ll try to hurt you again. Keep forgiving because you deserve to be at peace with yourself, not because they deserve your poise.
I hope you learn, forgive and repeat.
I hope at some point you understand why they keep trying to break you and I hope you empathize. Your forgiveness won’t justify them but it will surely justify you because you deserve to live peaceably with your own self. Hope for them but leave them be; you owe that to yourself.
I hope you come to terms with the brutality of this world and choose to forgive anyway. I hope you walk away from the pain with a smile on your face and in your heart.
I hope you rid yourself of the stinging urge to avenge your own, inflicting equal pain on those who hurt you will never bring you peace. And isn’t peace all you long for? I hope you reconcile with the upsetting fact that you may never avenge yourself but know that your forgiveness doesn’t dismiss their liability. It only dismisses your burden to hate.
I hope you understand the power behind forgiveness and understand that it’s the virtue that will save you, as it one day may them. I hope to one day find it within you to not only forgive, but to wish them well too. And I hope that one day you know peace so well that the thought of maybe smiling at them doesn’t tie your throat in knots.
I hope you keep forgiving no matter how hard it gets and I hope you keep forgiving regardless of the bottomless pits of hate you have to look away from. I hope you do it anyway because you will always deserve better that to stay stuck inside these pits.
I hope you forgive, gracefully; let go of the pain and hold on to its teachings.