So many things happen as we grow up. If we’re lucky, we had kind and thoughtful parents/guardians. But maybe we didn’t. We grew up hating them as people and for the things they said and did.

            In school we might have been blessed with wonderful friends, but we also might have been victimized by bullies whom we hated with all our might. The same might have happened on the job or with people we met in conferences, workshops and around the neighborhood.

            We might have retaliated verbally or, when young, by physical acts of aggression.

            Now we regret the things we’ve done, but also want to forgive the people who hurt us as a way of moving on.

            Who on your list is most deserving of forgiveness?

            Your task is to write either a personal essay in which you discuss the topic or create a story in which your protagonist is facing the same dilemma. Readers will need background, but not presented all at once. Find a way to weave it into the scene, either through dialogue or scene.

            Build in tension so that readers understand how the aggressors made you or your character feel.

            Have fun with this one.