FOR sure, all of us have been hurt before. Sometimes, repeatedly by the same culprit.

Fed-up, right?

As a mum, I’ve been torn by the tears rolling down my children’s cheeks. The times when life was almost unbearable for them. The times, when some people’s actions almost debilitated them.

Such times will not go away, so long as this world exists. So long as evil exists.

What do I tell my little ones? Forgive and move on.

Pray for those who hurt you.

“Crazy ah,” the world out there would say, but I believe in this so.

Why wouldn’t we want those who hurt us, to be better people?

Why wouldn’t we want those who have the intellect and energy to plan so well, trap and hurt others, to have a conversion of heart? To use that intellect and energy for the larger good?

Wouldn’t the world be a better place if such people could refocus and redirect their resources to doing good?

So, why wouldn’t we pray for them?

I taught my littlest one to have a candle in her room. To light up that candle when she needed a light to show her a way out of the darkness. To talk to that Someone Who is Love and Who would teach her to love and forgive.

Malaysia is in total darkness, now. There doesn’t seem to be a way out. Yet, some would still prefer to not forgive and work together for the larger good.

Forgiveness doesn’t mean we negate the injury inflicted and the pain felt.

Forgiveness is something we need to do for our own sanity and for Malaysia, our very survival.

Do we have another choice? Do we even have a plan to save Malaysia, those of us who would throw a wet blanket on the efforts to bring about reconciliation efforts, in order to save Malaysia?

Which candidate/s can save Malaysia?

Which young blood can take on those greedy, conniving, evil robbers at the helm?

Unforgiveness is Sin, see how we blind ourselves to what is more important now, to Malaysia.

By the way, anyone out there who has never sinned?

The Good Book tells us that to ensure God’s forgiveness, we need to forgive those who have trespassed against us.

Of course, easier said than done but practice does make perfect.

Forgiveness. Reconciliation.

The other factor would be Repentance.

My dear right-thinking Malaysians, has Dr Mahathir Mohamad not shown enough remorse? Isn’t his intention to save Malaysia, believable and sincere?

I believe that should Pakatan Harapan win the next elections, Dr Mahathir would try whatever he can, whatever he has left in him, to do the right thing.

I believe that’s Repentance.

If someone repents and I do believe, Dr Mahathir has, why do we not forgive him?

When someone repents, we must forgive, no?

Can we honestly think we can claim our pound of flesh from those who hurt us and not have to bleed to death, ourselves?

Does anyone with grey cells in his brain, think that Dr Mahathir still wants to lord over us?

His wife cried when he was announced as the prime minister candidate for the opposition. If I were her, those tears couldn’t have been for joy.

Both of them and their loved ones are bone tired to take on this child called Malaysia.

Yes, perhaps, he deserves the mess Malaysia has become. He understands most what Malaysia has become. So, why not let him try to unravel the mess?

We don’t deserve the mess, Malaysia has become?

Didn’t someone say, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing”?

We think we are good, right? And…. most of us are doing nothing concrete, right?

Let Dr Mahathir, Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and the rest, mismatched as they can come, try to do their thing, then, please.

Give them the mandate to save Malaysia. Let’s not cut our nose to save our face.

“The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong,” said Mahatma Gandhi.

Our beloved Karpal Singh was undeniably one of Malaysia’s greatest sons. He lived and died, all for love of his motherland.

I would think Karpal was a very strong man. Very, very strong. Would this great, magnanimous true son of the soil, not forgive Dr Mahathir?

Would Karpal not be humble enough to work with a sworn enemy, to save Malaysia?

I believe all of us, know the answer as to this man’s true greatness.

In revenge, we dig two graves, according to Confucius.

If we don’t forgive, in this instant, we dig three graves… the third being Malaysia’s.

My dear fellow Malaysians, our motherland is not just stuck in a rut. She’s being sucked into a death hole of no return.

If we think we are good men and can’t do anything to save Malaysia, then let’s not stand in the way of those who would sacrifice whatever they have left, to do so.

Forgiveness, here, is not just necessary for us to be free of the bitterness we have felt in our hearts all these years.

Forgiveness, here, is not just necessary for us to reclaim our peace.

Forgiveness, here, is not just necessary for us to move on and live a life befitting of us.

Forgiveness, here, is the only way to save Malaysia.

Our children and their children deserve better… let’s not teach them to not forgive an old man for his past actions.

Let’s teach our children and their children that when we forgive and allow this old man to redeem himself, we can be saved.

We are good people and many of us can do nothing concrete to save Malaysia.

But, we can be loving and forgiving Malaysians and support Dr Mahathir, Dr Wan Azizah and their comrades in PH, in their endeavour to do the right thing.

Thank you and God bless. – January 12, 2018.

* May Chee Chook Ying reads The Malaysian Insight.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.