FORGIVENESS: LOST & FOUND

I think forgiveness may be the purest form of love.
I was reminded of this earlier today when I got lost on my own accord while walking in the rain on the streets of Chicago.
(After all, sometimes you need to entirely lose yourself, in order to completely find yourself again.)

Every unrecognized street and unfamiliar neighborhood led me to imagine what my life might be like if it were different.
(You see, you don't have to deal with forgiving, if you opt for forgetting instead.)
One daydream led to another, followed by yet another,
until I became lost not only on the streets of the city but in the thoughts of my mind.

My fast-paced steps and far-off stares ceased suddenly when my eyes scanned something painted on the sidewalk.
I saw a word. A single word in ivory paint.

FORGIVE

I sat down on a damp bench and dug out my phone as I shivered in my drenched coat.
I started to scan through hundreds of snapshots noting the people, places and things in my life.
I found that despite all that has changed and hasn't, my life is not different or the same, it simply 'is'.
Of what 'is' at all times there is love.

Regardless of what has happened or what will happen,
love remains and does not relent regardless of chance or circumstance.
Despite what becomes different one month or what stays the same day after day,
love is constant and consistent. It is pure.
(This brings me to the word 'forgive'.)

It is this purity of love that can only be preserved with forgiveness.
Sometimes we need to forgive ourselves. Sometimes we need to forgive others.
Either way, forgiveness is necessary to protect the only thing worth living and dying for - love.

It's days like these that inspire me to get lost more often.
Sometimes it's the only way I can find my way.

-Allie Merrick