There was an event in High School in which one of my really good friends began to date my ex-girlfriend just weeks after we broke up. What made it difficult to forgive him was that he “ had not admitted wrongdoing, apologized, or asked for forgiveness.” (179) Given that my good friend offered me no real apology or explanation made it very hard to forgive him for what he did. Given that he was aware of how I felt about the situation if he had initially shown some type of remorse it might not have been as difficult to forgive him. I think it was interesting how the text pointed out that age plays a role in determining forgiveness. In fact, “ one study found that college-aged students, who were hurt in previous dating relationships, found it more difficult to forgive than any other age group who had similar experiences.” (179) When it come to finally forgiving him it greatly impacted my mental health as suggested in the text because I no longer had negative feelings which decreased my stress and anxiety levels.
For as long as I can remember, I've always been told that I should forgive and forget, no matter the circumstance. Even though your buddy broke the most important rule in friendship (dating your ex-girlfriend), I applaud you for being the bigger person and swallowing your pride and forgiving your friend and more so that he showed no remorse. The book was so on point when it talked about getting rid of negative feelings decreases stress! I have experience that so many times, and sometimes it is better health-wise to forgive people and get it off your shoulder instead of stressing!!
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