National Forgiveness and Happiness Day
Get healthier and enjoy life more by engaging with National Forgiveness and Happiness Day!
History of National Forgiveness and Happiness Day
Beginning as a kind of religious observation, National Forgiveness and Happiness Day was founded by Robert Moyers and the Worldwide Forgiveness Alliance. With the idea that forgiveness is an important part of people having the ability to love each other, this day encourages individuals to be more loving, kind and accepting of others while they forgive past hurts.
Healing damaged relationships and finding freedom, this day is meant to raise awareness for and foster understanding around the topics of forgiveness, peace, joy and love.
Research has shown that people who practice forgiveness may be healthier than those who hold onto grudges or become bitter. Forgiveness can lead to attractive results like improved mental health, less stress and anxiety, fewer depression symptoms, lower blood pressure, a stronger immune system and so much more.
National Forgiveness and Happiness Day offers the ideal opportunity to work on relationships with others (or yourself) that can bring a huge amount of freedom and happiness in the long run.
How to Celebrate National Forgiveness and Happiness Day
Paying heed to National Forgiveness and Happiness Day can be done in a wide variety of ways. Consider implementing some of these ideas toward a healthier, more whole life, in celebration and honor of the day:
Practice Forgiving Others
It is often said that the person who is hurt most by unforgiveness is the person who is holding the grudge. Even if the other person doesn’t know about it, or has died and isn’t able to know, going through the difficult emotional work of forgiving someone who has caused you harm allows you to experience the freedom and happiness that comes with forgiveness.
It might not happen overnight, and may even involve the help of a counselor or coach, but desiring to forgive those who have done harm is a huge step toward relational healing!
Ask for Forgiveness
Everyone is human and has done something to harm others. Sometimes people are unaware of it immediately but other times they don’t realize it until many years later. National Forgiveness and Happiness Day is the perfect time to take a little inventory of life and see if there are people you have harmed in the past. If so, consider calling them up, sending them a letter or meeting with them in person to ask for forgiveness that could potentially lead to reconciliation.
Forgive Yourself
Many times, the most difficult person to offer forgiveness to is yourself. In honor of National Forgiveness and Happiness Day, why not try out some paths toward self forgiveness? The ability to let go of anger and resentment about things that have gone wrong in the past can provide a huge amount of emotional health and healing.
Those who aren’t quite sure how to proceed might want to try out some online resources with tips for self-forgiveness, like acknowledging your feelings, acknowledging your actions, practicing compassion and making meaningful changes in life to help prevent such occurrences from happening again.
