Forgiving Someone Who Is Already Gone

I know it's different to forgive someone who has already died. There's no conversation to be had, no apology that might still come, no chance to work it out face to face. You're left with words stuck in your throat, addressed to someone who is no longer here to hear them.

My son, my daughter, this kind of forgiveness happens inside of you, and I am right here close by to receive what's left. You can talk to me as if you were talking to that person. You can cry what you never cried, say what you never said, release what stayed trapped because time ran out before reconciliation could come.

I see your grief mixed with this unresolved hurt, and I know it's heavy carrying both at once. You don't have to pretend the person was perfect in order to grieve their loss. You can forgive their failures and miss them at the same time. Both fit in the same heart, and I am holding both of them with you.