Grudges are Useless

Today I picked up the phone and called my Sister. You might be thinking, "big deal." Honestly, it is a very big deal. You see, I haven't spoken to my sister in over five months.

We had a falling-out several month ago, for reasons that are really not worth re-exploring. But let met share a few things I missed, during those five months:

• Watching her belly grow (she is expecting her first baby in July)
• Her home being severely damaged (causing $17,000 worth of repairs) during the intense TN & AL storms
• Her baby shower
• Plans to move to a new state (her husband is in the Army)
• Countless laughter and tears

Words can't express how much I've missed our hour long conversations on the phone about politics, military life, our husbands, our pets and my children. My Sister and I have ten years between us (I'm the oldest), but we have so many things in common, and I have missed sharing that common ground with her.

I wish I would have been there with her every step of her pregnancy. Soliciting my advice (whether she wanted it or not) on my experiences as a pregnant woman, or sharing my labor stories. I wish I had been there to listen to how uncomfortable she was feeling, and been a shoulder to lean on, when she was stressing about all the transitions that lay ahead.

Sometimes it is necessary in life to put aside differences, forgive and forget. Holding onto hurt is counter productive. It is useless to everyone involved. Life is so short and precious. I would rather channel my energy in cherishing my loved ones, than be bitter.

So today, I picked up the phone to talk to my Sister. A sense of relief was on both ends of the phone. We both expressed how sorry we were, and how we were ready to move forward. I loved hearing about how she was feeling, what she had been up to, and finding out what my first niece's name will be!

I've always been a very forgiving individual. However, this time I let my anger control my heart, and in the end, all I did was hurt myself.