Every day on the calendar seems to have a special meaning. International ice cream day, world high-five day, hot rod day—a lot of arbitrary days that are just for fun. But sometimes there comes a day that’s important to celebrate and teaches us to be better, like International Forgiveness Day on August, 2nd.
Let’s take a minute to talk about why grudges are a dangerous thing and why forgiveness is always the best path.
The Wounds We Give Ourselves
Holding onto a grudge is exactly like holding a burning, hot coal—the only person hurting is you and the wounds get worse the longer you maintain your grip.
Some individuals often talk about the times that they’ve taken a slight and stewed in for an entire weekend. Sitting in a chair, jaw locked—all they can think of is their “arch enemy”, replaying actions over and over in their head.
This feels like the only sensible thing to do in the moment, but really all you accomplish is wasting precious hours of your life poisoning your soul.
Accepting Imperfection
As children, we believe that the world is divided between good and bad people, and one of the difficult lessons that makes us adults is acknowledging that this is wrong.
The fact that someone has wronged you may not be disputed, but it’s important for you to realize that very few people go through life intentionally hurting others. Take some time to remove yourself from the situation and ask yourself “why did this person do the action that wounded me?”
It won’t erase the pain you suffered or make their actions any less harmless, but it will save you from years of anger and open a path towards reconciliation, and positivity.
Freeing your soul of ugly grudges is no easy chore, but if you’re looking for ways to move forward in your life, I am more than happy to help. Visit my website and consider signing up for my Maestro courses—make the decision that will change the rest of your life.
