This is the second in my series on what I called the Seven Most Important Virtues for Living. I will speak from my personal experiences on Forgiveness and try to share as much of my own life as possible. I do not want to speak as an “Expert.” I am far from being an expert on this subject.
Every Tuesday morning, I start my day with the following prayer:
- Please give me the strength and courage to forgive those who insult, disrespect or harm me in any way. May I be strong enough to offer forgiveness to others and to ask for forgiveness for myself.
Forgiveness is a subject that is both easy and difficult for me to write about. It is easy because I have had a great deal of experience with the subject. It is difficult because much of my experience has not been positive. It seems to be a virtue that I am not very good at. I can’t say that I ever gave it much thought until several years ago. Here is what changed my life.
When my oldest and only daughter started college, about two years after my first wife and I separated, we had a slight argument over money. I did not think it was that big of a deal but Chris (my daughter) became very angry. She said she never wanted to see me or talk to me again. She told me that I had made her life miserable when she was growing up and she wanted me out of her life for good. Almost ten years went by and despite my best efforts, she would not reply or respond to any overtures I made. I felt very sad but I did not know what to do. I was torn between trying to see her and also trying to respect her wishes.
I ended up talking to a sizable number of people who one for reason or another like me had been cast aside by friends or loved ones. I thought this would make an interesting story and I wrote some of my thoughts on this issue and sent it to the Oprah Winfrey show. I never expected to hear from them. Several months went by and one day I received a phone call. The person on the other end wanted to know if I would like to be on the show and talk about my problems with my daughter. The other person described this particular Oprah show as one that dealt with forgiveness. I was intrigued but I had several misgivings and turned the offer down.
A year or so went by and one day the Oprah show called me again. For the second time they asked me if I would like to be on the show. They explained that they would contact my daughter and if she accepted, we could both come on the show and tell our stories. It would be a show about forgiveness and I could offer my apologies for anything I had done and see if Chris and I could work things out on the show with Oprah acting as a facilitator. I decided to give it a chance and after discussing some logistics, I accepted the invitation.
A couple of weeks later, I was flown with my wife Karen and my step-daughter Megan to Chicago where they had booked rooms for us at the Omni Hotel in downtown Chicago. We were told that a limousine would pick us up in the morning and then take us back to the hotel or to the airport after the show was filmed. We were given food vouchers and enjoyed some fine dining in our hotel rooms before going to bed. There was a definite feeling of both excitement and dread on my part. I had no idea what to expect. At this time, I did not even know if my daughter was going to be there.
Next morning, I went for a run around the streets of Chicago. A funny thing happened on my run. A film crew from a local TV news network stopped me and asked me if I was a tourist. I said that more or less I guess I was and they then conducted a brief interview with me concerning what I thought of Chicago. Two TV shows in one day! After I returned to the hotel, Karen, Megan and I showered, dressed and waited for the limousine to take us to Oprah’s studio.
We were picked up and driven to the studio where Karen and Megan were taken to the audience area, while I was escorted to what they call the “Green” Room. There were actually two such “Green” rooms where guests could be separated. I talked to several other guests who were on the show also to deal with the subject of forgiveness. One was a man whose family had owned slaves and he wanted to ask forgiveness for the history of his family. The other was a Methodist Bishop who wanted to ask forgiveness for her church because of the slaughter of innocent Native Americans led by a Methodist minister named John M. Chivington at Sand Creek in 1864.
A short time passed and while I was getting my nose and head powdered, Oprah Winfrey herself and her little dog came in to chat with me. We talked for a short time and she told me that she wished me the best but to keep in mind that I might not get what I hoped for. She said that often the people who felt that they had been wronged did not want to forgive the other party.
I went out on the stage with Oprah and I was truly surprised that my daughter Chris had also accepted the invitation to be on the show. I was immediately hopeful that we could resolve our differences and begin a new relationship. Oprah explained that there were three components required for forgiveness. True forgiveness it was explained requires one to accept all three components if that is what the other party needs. The three components of forgiveness are:
- An apology or request for forgiveness
- A willingness to listen to hear how you hurt the other party
- A willingness to make amends or to try to correct the wrong in some way
Oprah started off the conversation by asking my daughter Chris why she did not want to speak to me. Chris had a lot of reasons. I had already realized that I was often angry when she was young and I would explode at the drop of a hat. I had gone through a Domestic Abuse Program a few years earlier in which through counseling and a support group, I had begun to get my anger under control. Chris had felt that while growing up she was often terrified to be living with me and feared for her and her mom’s life. She had never been physically hurt by me and I can only remember one time that I had hit her mom and that was after she hit me. Nevertheless, there was a constant feeling of fear in the house punctuated by my violent outbursts which included throwing things, punching walls and yelling at Chris and Julie, my spouse at the time.
When, Oprah finally turned to me and asked me what I wanted to say. I had no doubt in my mind that I was sorry for my actions and that I wished I could turn the clock back. I apologized to Chris and asked if she could forgive me. I was ready to make any amends possible. At this point, I had covered two of the three conditions for forgiveness. I had said I was sorry and I had listened to her pain and grief. I was ready to make amends. However, Chris did not buy into the scenario. She refused to accept my apology and informed me that she did not need a father in her life. However, she said that she had two children and that perhaps they could use a grandfather. She would have to think about it. That was the end of our conversation.
Before leaving the show, Oprah told me that she was sorry it had not worked out better but that forgiveness is a very delicate process and that it does not always go the way we hope it will. I was not discouraged though and I felt that the outcome was positive. I thought that I could be a good grandfather and I welcomed the opportunity.
A few years later, I was again contacted by the Oprah show for a “follow-up.” I again agreed to go on the show. I did not know if Chris accepted or even had an invitation as she was not on the show. My segment was very brief. I explained that Chris still did not want me in her life but that I had been given a few opportunities to share some time with her two children, Frankie and Jesse. These times were very brief and it was clear that it was only when Chris was present that I was allowed to see them. I did not know it at this time, but even this opportunity to spend time with my grandchildren would soon derail.
While asking for forgiveness is never easy, particularly when you realize how you have hurt someone; I do not think it is the hardest part of forgiveness. I had no trouble asking for forgiveness, for I am truly sorry about how Chris had to grow up. I wish I could redo her life and give her a new childhood. Many years have passed and I have only seen my daughter once in the past fifteen years. She has been remarried and divorced but I have not been invited to any of her life events and any efforts to send letters or cards have not been acknowledged. I found out two years ago in a conversation with my ex-wife that Chris had some time before attempted to take her own life. It was shortly after her second husband left her.
The hardest part for me has been to “let go” and to forgive myself. I tried going to confession at one of my annual Jesuit retreats. The Father and I talked about my “sins” and the issues that I had as not being a very good father. I was granted forgiveness by my confessor. I hoped that this would help me come to turns with the grief and pain that I often feel when I think of Chris. It has not.
I have been told that I really have not forgiven myself. These are just so many empty words to me. I do not know how to do this. Particularly, when I reflect on the fact that out there someplace is a child that I spent twenty years with and to whom I am now totally irrelevant. I never stopped loving my daughter. I always wanted to be a good father and I did try to be a good father. I remember many good times we had together as father and daughter. It is hard for me to accept that the feelings and memories are not mutual. If hell is of our own making, then I have made the hell that I feel when I think about Chris and wonder how she is. I wonder if she will ever change her mind and forgive me. Until then, I hope someday to know what it will feel like to forgive myself.
Aging Capriciously 