“For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. (Matthew 6:14-15) This is a verse I grew up with and was taught throughout my years of attending Catholic school. One of the main life lessons taught in Catholic school was to forgive each other and follow the word of Jesus. This verse is an example of the key to forgiveness; if you do not forgive, you will not be forgiven. What is forgiveness? To me, forgiveness is about getting over a past mistake and reconciling with that person. Is forgiveness a process? I think forgiveness can be a very long or short process, depending on the type of harm done to the individual. Recovering from a painful experience from the past can be difficult for some people and the severity of the damage caused to a person. often plays a role in how quickly a person is willing to forgive. Forgiveness is learning to forget what someone did to you and accepting their apology or making an apology. The act of forgiveness is not always about apologizing to someone, but about showing them acts of forgiveness. It can also be something that has seriously hurt someone and a simple sorry and moving on can do that. This type of forgiveness is used when someone has intentionally done something or an unbearable act to you. Having forgiveness outside of your life and practicing it in your life only makes life better and more attractive and enjoyable. Forgiveness can be a process that takes years to fully realize and truly trust that person again. It depends on what is done and how long it takes to fully accept or apologize. The first step to forgiveness is recognizing the middle of the paper...and making up with a person or meeting them halfway. It can be a long or short process, but following the steps to forgiveness can help anyone overcome it. As I mentioned earlier, Matthew 18:21-22 reads: You are not to forgive seven times, but seventy times seven times. This verse illustrates that forgiveness should always be given, no matter how many times it needs to be done or how serious the problem is. To be a good person is to be kind, generous, accepting of others' faults and forgiving. To live a happy and successful life, we must come out of the bad times and live for the good times. To overcome bad times, forgiveness is the key to our daily life. It may not be what we want to do, but there is always a time in our lives when we want to be forgiven. Forgiveness is a gift that you choose to give yourself or not, accept that gift, and use it in your everyday life..