It's easy to say forgiveness heals, that it's for the injured and not the offender, but it's another thing entirely to forgive. Forgiveness is a process rather than an event. It's an unfolding decision, one you make again and again.

But why forgive someone who's hurt you, even someone you love?

Sometimes, forgiveness means repairing a relationship that deserves another chance.

Other times, it means not giving power over your own life to anyone or anything else.

Still other times, you're simply ready to remove the malice from your heart.

Extending an offer of goodness, through your pain, to the person who caused that pain is easily one of the hardest things you ever learn to do. No wonder it's so empowering, so transformative: it take so much strength to do.

Strength you might not have realized you had.

It takes a certain level of spiritual maturity to release victimhood and offer goodness in the face of unfairness. In this way, forgiveness is one of life's greatest teachers.

It teaches you that you're powerful enough to turn pain into love.

It teaches you to take ownership of how you experience your experiences. It removes blame from the equation, freeing you to live by your own values regardless of whether someone else does.

Forgiving someone else teaches you about who *you* are.

You'll decide for yourself why you want or need to forgive someone else. These are some reasons of my own, ones we might have in common.

13 Reasons to Forgive That Person Who Hurt You

1. Everyone makes mistakes.
2. Everyone is doing the best they can from their current level of consciousness.
3. People deserve a second chance.
4. People can change.
5. You deserve to feel free. You're worth knowing what it's like to not have bitterness take up space in your mind, in your heart, in your life.
6. You don't need to wait for an "I'm sorry" to move forward with your life. It's your life.
7. When you let go of what happens inside others, you get to grow what's beautiful inside of you.
8. Forgiveness expands your sense of goodness, generosity, and compassion, making you a more passionate and present person in the world.
9. You are a role model for everyone in your life.
10. Beauty grows in unexpected places; growth and gifts come from the most unlikely situations.
11. Loving each other and loving yourself is kind of the same thing.
12. We're all connected.
13. We have such little time here.

If you're ready to set things right, see why I love the Hawaiian ritual of ho'oponopono so much.

. . .

Tell me:

Think about someone you've forgiven recently, or want to forgive. How will your decision to forgive them better your life, or how has it already?

Tell me in the comments. You never know who might need to read what you write, who you might inspire.

With you,

Jen

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