My good friend Sheri Rosenthal is doing a free class on forgiveness. You can’t connect with angels when you are full of anger and resentment so please read on.

What got you into the whole forgiveness thing?

My own journey to forgiveness began back in 1999 after selling my medical practice and starting my apprenticeship with don Miguel Ruiz, the New York Times best-selling author of The Four Agreements. To put it mildly, my experience was profound and directly led to the creation of this program.

As a physician I can definitively say that forgiveness has a profound and measurable effect on our health and quality of our lives. This has been proven over and over again in our medical literature. Dr. Fred Luskin, for example (one of my favorite researchers on forgiveness), has been working relentlessly and passionately at Stanford University on the subject for years. As Dr. Luskin says: “Forgiveness has been shown to reduce anger, hurt, depression and stress and lead to greater feelings of optimism, hope, compassion and self confidence.”

Why do you think people are so darn challenged by forgiveness?

Forgiveness is one of the most misunderstood concepts in our spiritual traditions. It’s not a high-in-sky idea, it’s not really difficult, and it most certainly does not mean that just because you are forgiving you are making the other person right. NO! NO! NO! Forgiveness is not condoning under any circumstances! Forgiveness does not make hurtful actions correct. But this is where people get confused and stuck.

What is truth is that our lack of forgiveness is the biggest obstacle we have in our lives and it affects us energetically on all fronts. I don’t care how large or small the incident is.

If that is so – then how do we go about forgiving?

The most important thing I learned is that you cannot heal a hurt at the same level of consciousness that it was created at. We must learn to see a transcendent view of what transpired – one that includes all perspectives regarding that situation. When we do that a different picture emerges – one that has clarity, compassion and understanding and that is the place we want to be, to be able to let go of our old stories and the pain that results from them.

The truth will set us free – but finding the truth is the challenge because it does not exist in the one perspective – we need to learn how to see in a different way and climb out of our limiting and narrow viewpoints.

Is it really possible to truly forgive – is that really truth?

Believe me, if you are having difficulty with forgiveness I can relate big time. I not only had a very challenging childhood, got raped in college, felt hurt by many people I thought were friends and also was responsible for hurting others that I felt really bad about – in addition to all that, my second husband had an affair. I know what it is like to walk around with that constant low grade feeling of anger, resentment, shame and self-loathing. Of course only you know what you are feeling inside.

I never thought I could get past all that since I had tried so many times. I read books, took classes and had therapy – which for me only ended up confirmed further that I had been wronged and deserved to feel the way I felt – but did not help me move past that place. Still in my heart I kept thinking – there has to be a better way, I knew I had to let go but I just didn’t know how.

When we forgive, we clear out all the balls-and-chains that connect us to others in the unhealthiest ways. We let loose the shackles that bind our hearts and limit the expression of our love. We become happy, not because of anything outside of ourselves, but simply because we are experiencing inner peace, self-love, and self-respect.

When we refuse to forgive all we’re doing is swallowing the poison hoping the other person drops dead. Instead we get an ulcer, high blood pressure, and headaches and the other person goes along on their merry way ignorant of our suffering. Forgiveness is a gift we give to ourselves so that we stop ruining our lives and become the awesome people we truly are. So yes, it is absolutely possible to forgive. I have forgiven everyone in my life including myself and if I can do it so can anyone else.

What can people do to begin their journey?

If you’re ready to make a difference in your life, to feel good and to be free, I invite you to sign up right now to receive my free 4 video forgiveness series. It is fun and practical and you will learn a lot about the forgiveness process.

So now that you know what forgiveness is and what it isn’t, that it’s not as hard as you think – I would love you to join me and be part of this forgiveness movement we are so passionate about! Don’t miss it!

For more information and free videos

Calling the angels into your home

With love and aloha,
Susan

Angels are everywhere just open your mind and your heart to the signs.

Make Angels on Your Shoulder part of your daily routine and share it with a friend!