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In our daily lives, we come across people who have committed grave errors in their lives, really hurt some people in a bad way, have treated others harshly, even committed murder. When regret and guilt come knocking on their door amd they finally realize the gravity of their mistakes in the past, they withraw from the rest of the world and enter the shell of guilt, refusing to forgive themselves and inflicting self punishment on themselves.

There are even some that fail to master enough courage to believe that they can be forgiven for their wrong doings and past mistakes not to talk of actually going and asking for forgiveness. Some finally die without the warm feeling of being forgiven. They die in their regrets and guilt with their consciences very heavy and a sadened spirit. I could not think 9f a more pitiful and disheartening death as one where a person dies in regret and guilt for the mistakes they made in their life and knowing they have not been forgiven of it. I don't think anyone should go through it or have to go through it.

That is why i thought it wise to put down a few words on the process of forgiveness in brief writing outlining a few main points that can be helpful and useful.

1, Acknowledge and Regret your actions
The whole process starts when you actually acknowledge that what you did was wrong and you show signs that you genuinely regret it. You must demonstrate that you feel sorry for what you did or else there is no point of asking for forgiveness when you don't even think you did anything wrong or you don't regret what you did at all. So, it is necessary that you acknowledge the wrong in your actions and show signs of regret and a willingness to change.

2, Forgive yourself
This is the most important aspect of it all and many people always forget this part of it. It is vital and important that you first forgive yourself for whatever thing you did before going to ask for the forgiveness of others. Why is this so important? The truth is, many people who fail to forgive themselves will not even think of a possibility that others will forgive them and even others forgive them, they will find it difficult to believe that they truly did. They will always be in doubt and still feel guilty and all that. So it is important that you forgive yourself first so that you will be able to accept the forgiveness of others. This is very important.

3, Ask for the forgiveness of the people you wronged

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Now this is the difficult part and most people fail to master enough courage to complete this stage. I know it is very difficult and becomes more difficult depending on the gravity of what you did to walk up to the involved persons and ask for forgiveness. It is not easy and might seem like the hardest thing you'll ever do. Sometimes, you might think it is just a waste of time because you think you will not be forgiven but you will never know for sure until you try right?
So, at this point, you are just giving it a try with the hope that you will be forgiven. It always start with a simple statement that means so much to the offended person than you will ever know. It goes with a simple I AM SORRY ....... What you should know is that depending on the person and what you did to him/her, it might take a while or a long time before they can finally forgive you. So you might want to go about it patiently and don't over do it. Just walk upto them and assume a position of apology e.g kneeling and just express how sorry you are for your actions and ask for their forgiveness. In most cases, they will not forgive you there and there so you will want to give them some time to do so. The time length all depends on two factors: the gravity of your crime and the person you wronged.

So these are the three main stages involved and everybody goes through these stages in varying time periods. It might take a short time or a long time to be forgiven but it is all worth it. Anybody who has had to live with regrets and guilt will tell you that it is worth it. I don't know how it happens on the inside but one thing i know is when you are forgiven, you feel like this heavy weight has been lifted off your shoulders and you can be at ease and feel comfortable with r he one you wronged.

Remember that the whole process takes varying time lengths depending on two main factors: the gravity of your crime and the person you wronged.