Does Forgiveness Cleanse Our Soul?

Recently, a friend of mine asked me to write a blog on forgiveness.  At first, I thought how am I going to accomplish this when I could not really think of what to write exactly based on this topic.  I thought about this topic for a few days until I finally understood what the idea of "forgiveness" meant.

 If you were to look up in a dictionary the word forgive you would see,

"stop feeling angry or resentful toward (someone) for an offense, flaw, or mistake."  It is an easy word to define.  However, is it an easy task to do?  A child as young as three years old may say, "I'm sorry."  A parent or a friend may say, "I forgive you."  However some crimes may be unforgivable.  Should a murderer be forgiven?  If someone took advantage of you and stole your money, should they be forgiven?  How much  do we allow ourselves to accept forgiveness?  "I forgive you," are three words that are not always so easy to say.  Sometimes, a friend might do something offensive to you, but time heals all wounds.  If you choose to live in a world of hatred and contempt, are you living the jovial life that you deserve?  If we don't forgive our friends, we may not have anyone to turn to and might live our life isolated from the outside world.  When you forgive someone, does it help you to relieve some tension and feel blithely again.  As a dear man once said,"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."

Martin Luther King, Jr.

If you decide to hold a grudge for the rest of your life will you truly feel at peace and be happy with your decision to hold on to your hate?   Mahatma Gandhi once said," The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong."

Personally, I believe forgiveness is a difficult task to accomplish.  It all depends on the person's misdemeanor.  If a person did something that is horrific and indefensible, then forgiveness may be unfeasible.  If you choose to, you can try to rise above it and attempt to forgive.  However, never forget what was done so that you can never feel staggered by that person's actions again.  A wise man once said, "Forgive your enemies, but never forget their names."  John F. Kennedy