Moving On And Learning to Let Go

The importance of forgiveness

Join my upcoming weekend retreat this November in Boone, NC. Click below to learn more and secure your spot!

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An integral part of my healing journey and learning to cultivate peace came from knowing when to let things go, forgive, and move on.

Photo by Meriç Dağlı on Unsplash

Recently, I was having a conversation with some family members, and I felt like I had stepped into a time machine and gone back to the early 90s as I sat there listening to stories that felt like they should have been buried a long time ago. My immediate thought regarding the things I was hearing was, “When are we going to let this go?”

I wanted to refrain from engaging in a circular conversation, especially one that has been circulating for a decade. For me, I had moved on from the topic, but it was clear that for others, their past pain was still weighing them down.

This made me think about the idea of forgiveness and how our mental health is dependent on learning when it’s time to move forward and release ourselves from things we cannot control, or else we will be at risk of staying stuck in our hurt, pain, and sorrow.

But what exactly is forgiveness?

Forgiveness is a gift we give ourselves. It's not about absolving others of their behaviors or forgetting the pain they've inflicted. Instead, it's about freeing ourselves from the chains of negativity that hold us back and keep us in a cycle of pain and misery. Sometimes, holding onto anger is like clutching a burning coal in our fist; we get burned, not the other person.

Growing up, I hated the concept of forgiveness because the way it was modeled to me felt more like sweeping things under the rug than actually finding a resolution and freeing yourself from pain and suffering. As I grew older, I learned to redefine what forgiveness means.

Forgiveness does not mean:

• Minimizing your pain or denying how you feel about a situation

• That you have to reconcile with the person who harmed you

• Pretending nothing happened

Forgiveness is a choice and it is one that only you can decide to make. You can choose when you forgive and the terms within your relationships with those who hurt you.

The point of forgiveness is about accepting that certain things are beyond our control and shifting our energy to focus on what we can control - our actions, our attitude, and our reactions to invite peace into our lives.

Tune in to episode 17, Learning to Forgive and Let Go to Protect Our Mental Health, to learn more about forgiveness and tools to begin this process of forgiving others to free yourself from the pain holding you hostage.

Tune into Mindful With Minaa wherever you listen to your podcasts. Please support the show by leaving a review, rating, and subscription to stay updated with new episodes.

Remember that forgiveness is a journey that brings us closer to peace.

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If you are looking for a deeper opportunity to practice being more self-aligned through the art of self-discovery, I am excited to invite you to join me in November for my upcoming retreat, Let’s Heal Together: Self-Discovery & Tools for Healthy Connections, at the Art of Living Retreat Center in Boone, NC.

The retreat will be held from Nov 15th to 17th and will be a wonderful experience to dive deeper into the topics of boundaries, community care, relational building, mental fitness, and more. Space is limited, so register as soon as you can. I look forward to seeing you in person.