Last week's NICE Assignment was to smile more. I'm not sure if I actually did...I tried though. But I'm going to keep trying. I've always been one of those people who looks like they're mad at the world, even though I rarely ever am.
This week's assignment is to practice forgiveness. The idea came from a Mayo Clinic article, Forgiveness: Letting Go of Grudges and Bitterness. If you read Melissa's post, you'll see she's kind of light hearted about it. But after reading the article, it really resonated with me because of some ongoing issues with my extended family. I've forgiven them, but recently because of things that have been said, my hurt and angering feelings have been resurfacing. I'm definitely not going to go into details, but below I've included parts of the article that brought me comfort. If you been holding a grudge or struggling with forgiveness, I suggest reading the article.
One of the hardest things about forgiveness is this situation, was/is that the others don't think they did anything wrong or victimized us. We all did wrong, my mom and I both apologized—our apologies weren't accepted. We were never asked for forgiveness or apologized to, and that almost hurts just as bad. The section of the article below really speaks to that.
Forgiveness can be challenging. It may be particularly hard to forgive someone who doesn't admit wrong or doesn't speak of his or her sorrow. If you find yourself stuck, it may help to write in a journal, pray or use guided meditation . . . Keep in mind that forgiveness has the potential to increase your sense of integrity, peace and overall well-being.
Getting another person to change his or her actions, behavior or words isn't the point of forgiveness. Think of forgiveness more about how it can change your life — by bringing you more peace, happiness, and emotional and spiritual healing. Forgiveness takes away the power the other person continues to wield in your life.
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