Forgiveness In 'Left To Tell' By Maya Angelou

702 Words2 Pages

Left To Tell Essay As famed poet Maya Angelou once said, "It's one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself, to forgive" (Angelou). Forgiveness is the decision to release any anger or blame towards a person or thing and let go, seemingly an easy task, but many people find it impossibly hard to do. In the aftermath of the devastating genocide in Rwanda, the most powerful step towards healing the nation was the forgiveness fostered by survivors. It was this strong belief that began to spread through Rwanda and brought people peace and acceptance. In Left to Tell by Immaculée Ilibagiza, Immaculée discovers forgiveness in her life, and begins to let go of the horrifying deeds that the Hutus committed against the Tutsis in order to move on and grow as a person, helping both herself and the killers move on. …show more content…

In the beginning of Immaculée's stay in the bathroom, she "began to pray for the killers and then stopped. [She] desperately wanted God’s protection, but believed in [her] heart that they deserved to die" (Ilibagiza 92). She struggled to accept the terrible events that were transpiring, causing her to harbor hatred and confusion in her heart. She did not understand that forgiveness would be a step towards peace. Although she knew that in order to act as a child of God, she must pray for even her enemies, her revenge-filled mind prevented her. Through reaching forgiveness Immaculée would be able to remain strong and faith-filled yet she could not dismiss her anger and fear. Immaculée went on to describe her experience with forgiveness in this exchange: "I reached out, touched his hands lightly, and quietly said what I’d come to say. 'I forgive you.' My heart eased immediately, and I saw the tension

Open Document