Creative Writing: Not Guilty

As I was reading the chapter on forgiveness in Psychology, Theology, and Spirituality in Christian Counseling by McMinn (2011), the personal life experience that jumped out to me was when I had to make the decision to truly forgive my ex-boyfriend and his parents for the emotional pain they caused me. After living in New Jersey for a month and spending time with my boyfriend and his family, working, and taking care of an elderly lady with dementia my world came crashing down on me. My ex-boyfriend’s parents discovered sin in his life and told me I could no longer pursue a relationship with him because of the sins he had committed. After finding out the sinful things my ex-boyfriend had done, I chose to forgive him. I also chose to give him a second chance at a relationship with me, but my effort to salvage our relationship was futile.

“Thank you!” I started to cry. “Please, be careful!” I cried into my dad’s shoulder.

As human beings we are often reluctant to let go of our anger and unwilling to forgive others. This becomes especially true in the case of loved ones or family members. The poem, “How Do We Forgive Our Fathers?,” written by Dick Lourie, addresses the different dilemmas associated with a child forgiving his/her father. In his six-stanza poem, the poet discusses how a child should forgive their father for traumatic events imposed on the child. This includes reasons for forgiveness, appropriate time to forgive, and whether or not to even forgive at all. Detailed through the different stanzas, the poem suggests that until one learns how to appropriately forgive another for wrongful behavior, they will never be able to let go of resentment and

Life, as we all know is saturated with misfortune. Most of us are able to go through these and learn from and exempt ourselves. Yet, this isn’t always the case. People are faced with bone riveting experiences that often take a long time to get over, if they ever do get over it. These episodes brew in our brain popping up at the most random points often bringing our tone down. Although these experiences may scare us and fill us with ruefulness and penitence, we can’t continue to live in the past and let these regrets habituate us. Self forgiveness is a remedy to healing and to moving on in life, no matter how hard it is.

With the educational instruction from our teachers we were able to assess classmates and our own hair types, and its’ specific needs. At that time I felt as though I honestly knew nothing about my own hair. When that segment of the instruction was completed

Your hair is one part of your body that shouldn't be taken for granted for any reason. Most of us don't think twice about all the tension braids, hair extensions and other strenuous styles put on our hair's edges. Repeated use of these types of styling practices will ultimately result in permanent damage. The damage that could have been prevented if we would have given more thought to our hair's health rather than just the beauty aspect of styling.

“Hey, there! I could get used to this,” Detective Maddie Maquire said to her partner as she climbed into the waiting car. Together, they worked for the Homicide Branch of the Major Crimes Division in Montgomery County, Maryland.

I pull my hair on the right side of my head by my bangs, that is why they are so short. I use tweezers that I keep by my bed in my room, I also go in front of a mirror to pull. It usually takes up to forty minutes. When I pull my hair it is due to stress because of my anxiety and OCD. It feels like I have an infected hair so I start itching where it is on my head because it is itchy, then I start pulling. My mind thinks my scalp is is itchy even though it is not and it feels like it is. I was born with this disorder, my parents say when I was three or four I was completely bald on the right side of my head. When I interviewed my dad this is what he told me” Your mom would read about Trichotillomania to understand it better. The books advised tying socks to your hands and putting a hat on your head while you slept”, ( Walkup, Shane. 11, Dec 2015). I usually pull my hair before I go to bed, while I’m watching T.V, or when I’m bored. I have tried stopping by telling myself “ Just go one day without pulling. You can do it”. I never do because of my anxiety. I’ve also tried to clean my room or workout to keep pulling out of my mind. Sometimes I don’t even notice until I start thinking about it and realize what I am doing, so I sit on my hands to try not to pull my hair. It is hard some days and easier the next, but I still try to stop

If his father had tried to let go of whatever guilt he was holding onto, his last few days would have been better if he had forgiven himself. While it is probably a relief when the other person forgives you, it is also important to forgive yourself. Not forgiving yourself will lead to stress, which will ultimately lead to sickness. If the father had tried to forgive himself, he probably would’ve been healthier and happier in the end. This relates to my claim in that you will achieve peace of mind through forgiving yourself.

Ever since I was little I loved hair; blonde, brunette, red, long, short, all types. All of my friends and family thought I would become a hairdresser, for a while I wanted to. I spent many long nights getting my applications filled out. Then one day as I was walking along the old brick roads in my small hometown, I saw that little red for sale sign on the front of Eleanor’s Wig’s.

The journal article, Intervention Studies on Forgiveness: A Meta-Analysis, written by Thomas W. Baskins and Robert D. Enright examines several studies on forgiveness. Based off the many studies, the definition of forgiveness is having the ability to end the feelings of resentment against another individual. The process of forgiving has been around since the beginning of time when God gave mankind a cure for the curse that started when Adam and Eve ate from the tree of life. However, it was not scientifically studied until the 1990’s.

A large amount of people suffer from hair loss and dandruff problems. Every time you use a hair brush the amount of hair that gets tangled and stuck in it is shocking. It may occur due to various reasons like lack of moisture and dandruff.

Several minutes after arriving at the photographer’s house my hair almost murdered her mother. The short woman with her round miniature glasses stood in awe at the sight of my hair. Once again my tangled frizzy hair had ruined the day. I stood there awkwardly trying to hide my trembling hands in the ripped pockets of my old blue hoodie. I wondered if this would be the end of my non-existent modeling career. Would the gigantic beehive on my cold head ruin my mother’s dream? Confused and upset, the old woman sat me on a bumpy wooden chair and then turned on several smoldering hair irons. First, she grabbed a bottle of moose and drenched my hair in the dripping substance. Without any heat protection, she took several irons and stuck them to my hair. She had several participants that stood there holding the weapons burning off the top layer of skin on my head. Several times they stuck the smoldering weapons to my head, and each time the odor of burning flesh stood the tiny hairs in my nose. I let out several screeches and grunts in pain, as my flesh sizzled and turned a bloody orange. Eventually after two hours, the last strand of hair went up in fiery

Upon awakening one morning, did it appear as though someone had given you a haircut while you were sleeping due to all the hair on your pillow?

These experiences had taught me a lot of things. For one, i learned that a small mistake in our path could lead to a huge catastrophe at the end. And remorse or guilt alone is not going to change anything. We have to stand up, face the truth, and stay strong. Be a man made of steel. Have a will stronger than iron. Do not let anyone get you down, because they don't control your life. You do. And I learned that making fun of others' appearances is not funny. It is mean, intolerant and cruel. For we never know what kind of things they are going through and the last thing they need is to receive another cynical stare filled with one-sided judgment. And to be honest, I'm glad that God struck me with this obstacle. Without it, i would never learn to appreciate myself and the others. For i believe that failing once does not mean I’m going to fail