Writing in Snow

Memorial Day Weekend: Thoughts on Forgiveness

Jalál (Glory), 10 ‘Aẓamat (Grandeur) 175 B.E. - Saturday, May 26, 2018

"…Pray to be forgiven, O people, for having failed in your duty towards God, and for having trespassed against His Cause, and be not of the foolish…"
Baha’u’llah1

I'm cleaning out my desk drawers, and going through hard copies of poems I wrote over the past few decades. One of the poem's I rediscovered is titled "The Poem I Can't Write." Rereading the poem got me to thinking about forgiveness, and the difficulty, we human beings have, of forgiving. I've known for sometime that there is, at least, one person I've had difficulty forgiving.

The Poem I Can't Write

Forgiveness
is a place inside;
an alcove where my soul resides.

Forgiveness
is the verse I can't write
in my ego shrouded night.

After rereading the quote from Gleanings, I realized I have to forgive that person. I have to let go of the hurt, and the fear that was caused by the person. However, that person died years ago, so I can't go to him and say "I forgive", and, even if I could, would the person understand my hurt. How do I forgive? How do I let go of the past? I need to move on with my life, and holding onto this will hurt my soul. I think the best way to handle this is to write another poem title "The Poem I Can Write."

The Poem I Can Write

Forgiveness
is a poem I must write
on the alcove of my soul.

Forgiveness
is a place inside
that helps me to let go
of ego's fears that cripple
the progress of my soul.

Alright, sometimes forgiveness is a selfish act because it allows us, as human beings, to let go of the past. It allows us let go of things that are holding us back from achieving our full spiritual potential. I suspect that the best way to let go of something is to pray it out and/or write it out. We have to stop obsessing about the hurt, and worrying about what we should have done.

***

Pennies from Heaven2

Coins descend on me,
bright coppers rain from above,
bringing me luck, joy, peace, and love.

Poet's Note: ▼

I wrote this on 13 Nur 159 B.E. The inspiration was a conversation I had with a friend about pennies and blessings.

Footnotes
1  Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u’llah, p. 104.
2  Posted in my offsite blog Poet 999 - A Butterfly Emerges from Her Cocoon.