Have you ever felt like your heart was carrying a heavy, jagged stone? That is often what resentment feels like. Marianne Williamson’s beautiful words remind us that compassion is the actual key needed to unlock the gate of forgiveness. It is easy to think that forgiveness is about letting someone else off the hook, but it is actually about using compassion to release yourself from the weight of anger. When we approach our hurts with a soft heart, we find that the gate begins to crecit, and once we step through that gate of forgiveness, we find ourselves standing before a wide-open door to love.

In our daily lives, this process isn't always as poetic as it sounds in a quote. It usually happens in the middle of a messy kitchen, or during a tense phone call with a sibling, or even in the quiet, lonely moments after a misunderstanding with a partner. We tend to build walls of resentment to protect ourselves from being hurt again. We think that staying angry keeps us safe, but in reality, those walls just keep us trapped in a cold, lonely room. Compassion allows us to look at the human messiness of others, and even ourselves, and realize that everyone is struggling with their own shadows.

I remember a time when I felt so deeply hurt by a friend's thoughtless comment that I couldn't even bear to see their name pop up on my phone. I was holding onto my anger like a shield, but I was also feeling so isolated. One afternoon, as I was sitting by the pond watching the ripples on the water, I tried to practice a little bit of compassion. I tried to imagine what kind of heavy day they might have been having that led to such unkindness. Slowly, the sharp edges of my anger began to soften. By choosing compassion, I was able to forgive, and suddenly, the warmth of our friendship started to flow back into my life again.

Forgiveness is a practice, not a one-time event. Some days the gate feels stuck, and other days the door swings wide. But as long as you keep tending to the flame of compassion in your heart, you are moving toward a life filled with much more love. Today, I want to encourage you to look at a situation that has been weighing on you. Ask yourself if you can find just one small drop of compassion to offer. You might be surprised at how much lighter you feel once you start turning that key.