Beauty of Forgiveness-Essay

The Beauty of Forgiveness

Life is short. In fact, life is TOO short. We spend our lives holding on to so much and for what reason?? Everyday people are going through horrible, unfathomable situations. These experiences are way beyond what we experience in everyday life here in America and the fact that certain individuals can turn a wicked scenario into something that they can forgive is absolutely amazing. There should be more examples of this human clemency and we should follow the humbleness these people. Naysayers may say that forgiveness is a sign of weakness and/or that someone needs to be held accountable but from a state of being healthy as well the aspect of mind over matter, forgiveness really means so much more that that.

First and foremost, forgiveness is a wonderful tool in self-healing. The importance of being healthy is a given and it’s extremely valuable to one’s wellness. You can live longer, happier and avoid sickness and disease as much as possible. According to the World health Association, being healthy means “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." (WHO) “. If you are stuck in a condition of un-forgiveness, you are holding onto a state of anger, resentment, hatefulness, hostility, bitterness, rage and so on and this negative mental state does nothing positive for the body. From the general risks of high blood pressure, risks of drug and alcohol abuse, depression and so on, we can believe that holding on to these negative emotions is not conducive to one’s health. As a professional massage therapist, I see so many individuals holding on to states of utter unhappiness and un-forgiveness. My belief, as well as many others practicing in the felid, believe that knots are blocks of “pain, anger and frustration” (KNOTS).  This is the physical manifestation of what the mind can do to our physical bodies. No one likes walking around with a ton of bricks on their back. You’re like a walking, talking, cranky version of yourself. Imagine being free of that. Letting go and forgiving will help your body ‘release’ the pain mentally and physically. You would be one step closer to being a healthy, prettier, happier version of yourself.

Now, I’m not going to declare that you should forgive anybody and everybody. Contrary to what I am saying so far, sometimes forgiveness should come with limits. You never want a mean, cruel and manipulative person to try and take advantage of you. It’s best to be smart about how to proceed with each individual. You should use your common sense or even your lifelines like friends, family and coworkers to help you with sticky situations. Plus, as I’ve mentioned before, accountability is extremely important. If someone is committing unspeakable, cruel, illegal, harmful acts, you should not let that slide so easily. Hopefully, the situation has been resolved and you can work on forgiveness from there. If it never gets resolved, it’s wise to make the best of the situation and work on your forgiveness or else you’ll be building the “anger knots” slowly but surely.

Moving on, how one reaches a state of forgiveness is up to the individual. It’s a commitment and it’s definitely not going to be easy. It’s going to take strength, courage, and love.   I love the words and wisdom that the Mayo clinic has advised for individuals to try. For example they suggest that “When you're ready, actively choose to forgive the person who's offended you”. They have also suggested that you “move away from your role as victim and release the control and power the offending person and situation have had in your life” (MAYO). I believe it’s helpful to remember the people who have forgiven YOU when you have wronged THEM. Having compassion and understanding will open your mind and body and free itself of pain, anger and whatever you’re holding on to. Or perhaps you should try recollecting such individuals like Eva Kor, an actual Holocaust survivor, who forgave the Nazi’s for such horrible acts they did while “researching” she and her twin sister. If this woman who has seen and experienced the most appalling things you can imagine can  forgive the people who were responsible for these acts, I believe smaller, more trivial things would be a piece of cake in comparison.

To sum up, life is way too short to live it as an unhappy, in pain, holding on to grudges type of individual. If you learn to forgive, you may improve the quality of your life. You might experience a sense of compassion and a sense of freedom from the burdens of all the negative emotions associated with not wanting to forgive. As long as you stay smart and sharp while not letting others think you’re too weak, you could be on the wonderful road to happiness. It’s worth a shot, don’t you think? You’re body and people like me who come in contact with you on an everyday basis, will thank you.