LETTERS: STUDENT SOUGHT AND DESERVES FORGIVENESS

To the editor:

This is a letter I sent to my daughter's friend.

We have all done things in life that have harmed others in some way. Some of those are small things, easily forgiven and forgotten. Some are larger, hurt longer and linger with us forever, especially among friends. The important thing to remember is that the heartfelt request for forgiveness is always given from above. Be thankful for the forgiveness you have received, and be empathetic that not all can always be forgiven.

I know you feel that the entire community is against you and wants to see you punished indefinitely. There are those of us who, although we do not approve of what took place, know you better than others because you have been our children's friend for years. We believe you when you says there were never malicious intentions involved.

I attended school with the parents of the friend involved and feel deeply for the pain they have experienced. There are many who wish we could take the pain away from all of the families involved, including yours. You have spent more than one conversation with my family and others expressing your deep regret for what took place and your desire to undo the harm done. For that sincere openness and honesty, I as well as others believe you have learned a valuable lesson, have forgiven you and want you to know you are, as always in the past, welcome in our home.

I do not personally believe that any additional lessons can come from you or the others involved being prevented from attending school to further your education or from preventing you from participating in athletics. If our coaches and teachers are doing their jobs correctly, you each can only value and become better adults for continuing on with your education and school activities. There are many lessons for all that should be being taught and learned daily from belonging to a team, a class, a lab group or a club.

These are not lessons of just belonging, but lessons of being committed to something, responsible for a piece of something, learning to compromise with others, empathize with others, respecting others' opinions even though they may not be our own. School is not just about reading, writing and arithmetic. It is also about learning to effectively participate in a social environment.

So, not just because you are my daughter's friend, but because I believe in you as a person and believe you are truly sorry for the events that occurred and the pain that others have felt, I want you to know that there are those of us who care about your well-being too and want you to grow up believing that there are also people in the community capable of allowing second chances to those who have asked for them. I believe that you have. And I believe that God knows that you have.

We care about you.

KIM HODO

Jackson