What if you always choose forgiveness...

This was a "Whatif" question submitted by a user. I thought it was thoughtful and very thought provoking so I decided to make it a featured question on www.whatifbag.com to see how others would respond. I know we have all been hurt in some way by someone else before so I believe forgiveness plays a role in all our lives. Some people are better at it than others even in the worst situations. So may next question is... What's their secret? In reading the question again, I wondered if the person who wrote it was struggling with forgiveness and they were looking for clarity or hoping for some insight in others answers. In any event, I found myself wanting to answer the question right away. I believe that in order to really be free of negative feelings, forgiveness is the best way to move out of a painful place to a place of peace. Forgiveness is very freeing. But that doesn't mean it doesn't change your opinion of someone. Forgiveness to me is definitely the healthy choice. Resentment and holding onto negative emotions only hurts you and will continue to tear you down. So yes, go ahead and choose forgiveness all the time and leave it with the other person. My question then becomes...Can you forgive someone and also forget? That's were it gets tricky for me. Forgetting is not as easy. People define themselves by their words and by their actions, so instead of forgetting I think for me it has be called being able to "let go." I mean you may not want to forget that someone is a real asshole and you can decide how much you will allow them to become a part of your life. But you can forgive them and just let it go. Then you are free and able to move on! Maybe they will follow suit and become better people too. Maybe not, but at least you are good with you!