Banish those demons!!

We all have demons. Unresolved anger, hurt, disappointment, resentment. You have to resolve them in order to live a happy life. It isn't easy, but you need to do it.

Forgiveness is hard. It does not mean that you approve or condone the behaviour that you are forgiving. It means that you acknowledge it and its impact on you and you let it go. You stop lamenting over what could have been or what should have been and accept what is. Today. Move forward.

I had an unresolved issue. It was not something someone did to me...I did something unkind to someone else many, many years ago. It haunted me. I regretted it so much, but did not see a way to let it go and move on. Many triggers reminded me of my actions throughout the years and I decided last year that I had to forgive myself. It was very difficult and very scary, but I opened up a dialogue with the person I hurt and acknowledged that I knew what I had done and the impact it likely had. I acknowledged that I was immature and selfish to say the things I did. I said I was sincerely sorry.

At that point, I resolved the issue for myself. I could move on. I put down the 34 years of guilt I was carrying around. What a relief. I was also very happy and very fortunate to have the person respond that they understood and wanted to move forward as well. That was an added bonus.

The act of forgiving yourself frees you from reliving that moment again and again. It is over, done with, air is cleared. Whether the other person forgives you or not, if you have done all you can to atone, then you need to move on.

There are other pieces of baggage I carried around as well. People who disappointed me. People I felt had abandoned me. I waited many, many years to hear them say they acknowledged how they hurt me...but it never came. I was always prepared to forgive them, had they asked. Then I realized that they did not need to ask me to forgive them. I could just do it. It does not relieve their own guilt, but it lets me move on. I tell them through my thoughts that I have let it go, and the burden is theirs to carry, not mine. Phew! What a relief that is. Again, a huge burden that we carry with us that we can let go.

Do yourself a favour. Atone for your wrongs and forgive those who have wronged you. Don't let them hurt you again, but move forward from this day on.

The lighter we are, the higher we can fly.