Water Under the Bridge

Water Under the Bridge

It seems that just about every week people share stories with me about past unpleasant experiences that they’re holding onto for dear life. These “tales of the past” most likely change every time they relate them, but the endings are always the same--they’re not talking to or associating with that person because of what was said or done many years ago. Unfortunately, the shunning is usually directed at family members or even good friends that said or did something that was considered offensive. It’s regrettable that those incidents aren’t confronted immediately since many times the meaning of a person’s words or actions is misinterpreted by the offended person. However, even if you haven’t “cleared the air” in the ensuing years, I can assure you that time will indeed heal the great majority of wounds, if only you’ll allow the mending to take place. I believe there are many paths beyond the hurt and strain in any relationship.

There is no better time than today to move beyond your “hold ups” and let those hurts move on down the stream of life like just so much water flowing under a bridge. If we don’t let go, our minds will gradually make these perceived offenses appear much worse than they really were. Often the person toward whom we bear a grudge wasn’t being mean-spirited at all; it was merely a slip of the tongue or an ambiguous statement or action that was misinterpreted. Always try to understand that the other person might’ve been in a bad place at the moment those unfortunate remarks were made. Forgiveness can be face to face, long distance, or just a mental release of the incident. Life is short and well worth whatever effort it takes to repair a relationship. There’s no substitute for letting unpleasant experiences in our past become just so much water under the bridge.

“What you need to know about the past is that no matter what has happened, it has all worked together to bring you to this very moment. And this is the moment you can choose to make everything new. Right now.”--Anonymous