Are you weighed down by guilt? Or do you chose to rise like a Phoenix?

Sometimes the best look the ugliest. Take Steven Smith’s example of letting the ball go to the keeper in English conditions. It can’t get uglier than that, but what matters is he survived and that’s the best part.

Now, this guy along with David Warner has gone through a lot preceding the world cup. We’ve all been very critical of their actions, and rightly so, coz we all want to see the game remain the gentleman’s way. However, witnessing how rouge the English crowd has been to them in the ongoing Ashes series for actions done 15 months back, it gives the impression they've committed a cardinal sin that deserves nothing but ridicule and eternal damnation. I wonder what will happen if we Indians start judging the English for the barbaric 200 years of British rule on Indian soil, using the same yardstick. But thankfully, we don’t coz isn’t that a sign of a “civilised society”, something they wanted to teach us under the garb of the “white man’s burden”?

Two things come out of this incident. Firstly, it’s the courage shown by Smith and Warner  after all they’ve gone through to come out and play for their country without compromising on the spirit of competitiveness. Secondly, they are not weighed down by guilt anymore which could’ve led to several negative emotions like depression, disinterested in excelling, etc.

I think there is a lesson for those who think they are defined by their past deeds. Let bygones be bygones. There is forgiveness and hope. A hope to dream big and achieve big and a considerate group of people who have the heart to forgive and forget won’t hurt either. Charles Colson, former aide to President Nixon says, “one of life’s biggest paradoxes is that victory often emerges out of our toughest and darkest times”.

The four Rs sums up the experience of these two extraordinary gentlemen. Recognition of one's mistake leads to a feeling of remorse, forcing the person to repent, giving themselves the chance to revive their lives with purpose and meaning.  

So, the question is not if the person deserves forgiveness or not, you, though, definitely deserve peace of mind! Forgiving others as well as oneself helps. #Peace #Out