Forgive Yourself

---

This old gal…

Always feels a pang when she thinks about that dog on the farm…the farm dog…fox terrier…black and white…gifter of the dead rat at the end of the sidewalk…

His name was Eddie…got him as a pup when those girls of mine were little…that dad of theirs grew up on the farm…wanted a farm dog…

And that’s where he stayed…outside on the farm…lived in the shed…ran around…chased squirrels…and was pretty much ignored by city slicker me…

And looking back…there’s shame…and confusion…and wonder as to why…why were we not best friends…why didn’t city slicker me pet him…let him inside…bond with him…

Can’t remember really…a busy mom with three little girls…full time job…maybe there wasn’t time…maybe there wasn’t the energy…maybe he just wasn’t interested…

But today…20 years later…there is regret…

And so it is…in life…those pangs we feel for things we’ve done in the past…the snub…the betrayal of a best friend…refusing to pet the dirty barn dog…

Acknowledge them…embrace them…admit that you’ve grown and if you had a chance to do it over again…you’d do it differently…

Forgive yourself…forgive others…and pray for them to forgive you too…
​
And that husband of mine…agrees…