“Until we can forgive the person who harmed us, that person will hold the key to our happiness; that person will be our jailor. When we forgive, we take back control of our own fate. We become our own liberators. We don’t forgive for the other person. We forgive for ourselves.” —Desmond Tutu
Forgiveness can be a tough one, right? I’m always amazed when on the news I hear of, for instance, a mother forgiving her son’s murderer. Or her daughter’s rapist. The drunk-driver. The cancer.
Yes, these illustrate the extreme end of the continuum, yet I can’t help but wonder, how did she get there? How does she find forgiveness in her heart when her life’s been torn apart?
Whatever spiritual, psychological, undoubtedly hard-won lessons may be involved, perhaps we get there one small step at a time, starting with the little things, the minor transgressions. Consider this: Knowing that to forgive is an act of self-care, where might you start?