I don’t know about you, but I feel like I’m forever making mistakes and saying the wrong thing. Even my best intentions sometimes turn out to be the wrong thing said-or-done and I inadvertently hurt a friend’s feelings. And I’m 37! My kids are hurting each others’ feelings on the daily. It’s part of growing up together and learning empathy. We do a lot of forgiving and learning to accept apologies in this house.
What is forgiveness?
Sometimes people make mistakes. Sometimes we make mistakes. Forgiveness is when people overlook the mistakes others have made that have hurt them and decide to give them a second chance. Forgiveness does not mean that you aren’t hurt anymore or that you forget what happened. It also doesn’t mean that what the person did to you was right or okay. But it does mean that you decide to love them through the mistake and the hurt. It means moving your relationship past the hurt.
We can also forgive ourselves. Sometimes we make mistakes that hurt others or hurt ourselves. We regret our actions. When we forgive ourselves, we don’t punish ourselves for making a mistake. We accept that we can move forward and believe that we can do things differently next time.
Here are some books featuring forgiving characters.
Rotten Ralph by Jack Gantos
Rotten Ralph is one bad cat. His family gets fed up with him and he is left to live with the circus. However, his family misses him and forgives him for all the rotten things he has done. He also forgives his family for leaving him behind!
Up in the Leaves by Shira Boss
This is a great story and it is true! It is about a boy who built treehouses in Central Park. He continued to get in trouble with the NYC parks department, but they forgave him and offered him a job taking care of the trees.
Alice and Gert by Helaine Becker
This is a story of the grasshopper who sang all summer and the ants who worked hard to prepare for winter. The ants forgive the grasshopper and make sure he makes it through winter.
Enemy Pie by Derek Munson
This is a fun story about a little boy with an enemy and how he makes a new friend.
The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister
Rainbow Fish is boastful and proud. He offends the other fish. However, he gives away his beautiful scales to others and the rest of the fish forgive him for his selfish ways.
How do you practice forgiveness in your home? I hope these books inspire some good conversations with your kids!
Warmly,
Heather
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