Grace

This year, I spent some time doing a lot of forgiveness work – both of myself and of others.

I think I finally came to understand the importance of grace. Both in the giving and receiving of it.

We live in an era where as a society we appear to simultaneously be more evolved/progressive and ‘woke’ than we have ever been (I use this term with no irony or disdain), but also more callous, hurtful and unforgiving. Cancel culture and digital lynch mobbing seems to have bred this kind of collective amnesia that conveniently forgets that we are ALL deeply flawed human beings and we all fuck up from time to time (some of us more than others, sure, but none of us are perfect, otherwise we wouldn’t be here). 

This year as I found myself on the other side of the accountability mirror, I realised something: grace is given, it is not earned.

And the fact that it is not deserved is precisely the thing that makes it grace.

So how do we balance the need for grace and forgiveness with the need for boundaries and accountability?

I don’t know what the answer is. All I know is that when it came time for me to apologise and say sorry, I was really grateful to all the people who accepted my metaphorical olive branch and so I shall endeavour to do the same for others.  

So, for the most part I will abstain from casting judgement whenever possible. It’s not my responsibility to balance the karmic scales of the universe and I am glad it’s not. Lest of all because I wouldn’t even know where to start. 

Why would I try to shoulder a responsibility that’s not mine and that I’m also wholly unqualified to carry correctly?

So, will I let bad people back into my life? No. Do I forgive them and wish them all the best? Yes.

Stay classy ✌🏻