Ellie Atherton
Author ~ Registered Nurse ~ Herbalist
EPISODE 6 – Forgiveness
Do you have a heart for forgiveness? This week is part 1 of my discussion with my friend, Marcia Marcotte. We talk about her life before she knew how to forgive herself and others and the transformation she experienced once she embraced the gift.
I am so glad I sat down with you yesterday, Ellie, and visiting with you at my home. I am so glad I have know you since childhood and kept in touch throughout our lives.. I read your second book in one day and I’m sure, like Marcia, I will be reading it again. I definitely read this book hearing your voice and seeing you with your patients in their homes/lives. You write like you talk and I love that! You, my friend, are a gift to all those who know you.
Our visit, yesterday, opened up so much for me and hearing Marcia talk about forgiveness and reading about it in your book brought it around full circle for me. I’m sure now that is what I need to work on for myself so that I can find happiness. As Marcia stated about having a good life with her husband and children, I feel the same. I feel like I could leave this earth today and feel fulfilled in my life. My problem is I want to feel more than just contentment in my life, I want to find happiness and cannot do this until I find forgiveness of myself. I just don’t know how to go about it and find it hard to believe that i can achieve it However, I am going to try. I will be listening to more of your podcasts and look forward to more of your writings. Thank you for being YOU and thank you to Marcia for sharing her experiences, it was very helpful and encouraging.
What a beautiful message, Jody. Thank you for your kind words and compliments, I’m so touched. Wow! I love that you read the book after I left and it helped:) I too am thankful for our many years of friendship, the teenage memories, our times together when our kids were young, and I love that no matter how long it’s been we pick up as if we had just seen each other last week. You are a treasure to know and always fun to be with.
I appreciated our conversation about forgiveness and that you felt comfortable sharing your thoughts and emotions with me and also in this message for others to read. I often open up these discussions with people and know they are emotional for all of us. It’s another topic, like dying, that we would rather not discuss. My dying patients taught me the value of being vulnerable and honest with ourselves in order to find the forgiveness necessary to move into a place that instead offers happiness, and peace around the situation. I have been working on forgiveness in my life for years and have learned to be patient with myself. It is always worth the effort and the wait. I can tell you that since I discovered the power of forgiveness I seek it out at every turn. The joy it offers is deep and I never want to be without it in my life again.
I feel blessed and grateful that our visit, my book, and the podcast interview with my friend Marcia have helped you. I am totally committed to sharing what I learned from the dying about forgiveness, and my own experiences in order to help others find it long before they reach the end of their lives. I am so happy that you have embarked on the path to healing. Like everyone, you need to be released from the suffering and sadness that is created by not forgiving and you deserve the joy that comes once you embrace forgiveness for yourself and others. I am cheering you on my friend! Much love to you.