About Forgiveness

I forgive the tears I was made to shed,
I forgive the pain and the disappointments,
I forgive the betrayals and the lies,
I forgive the slanders and intrigues,
I forgive the hatred and the persecution,
I forgive the blows that hurt me,
I forgive the wrecked dreams,
I forgive the stillborn hopes,
I forgive the hostility and jealousy,
I forgive the indifference and ill will,
I forgive the injustice carried out in the name of justice,
I forgive the anger and the cruelty,
I forgive the neglect and the contempt,
I forgive the world and all its evils…
I also forgive myself.
May the misfortunes of the past no longer weigh on my heart.

Instead of pain and resentment, I choose understanding and compassion.
Instead of rebellion, I choose the music from my violin.
Instead of grief, I choose forgetting.
Instead of vengeance, I choose victory.

I will be capable of loving, regardless of whether I am loved in return,
of giving, even when I have nothing,
of working happily, even in the midst of difficulties,
of holding out my hand, even when utterly alone and abandoned,
of drying my tears, even while I weep,
of believing, even when no one believes in me…
So it is. So it will be.

---  Paulo Coelho