The Gift of Teshuva

The Jewish month of Elul is an amazing time to me.  Teshuva is often translated as repentance.  That doesn't do the word justice.  Teshuva means, To Return.  To return to what?  Hashem has set up a path for us to follow.  He's given us the Torah (and the other nations have the Seven Noahide Laws), and it has all our laws.  It has our moralities.  It literally has an answer for anything that may come up in life, if you know where to look.  In order for us not to be robots, G-d has given us a challenge.  He's given us this guy whose sole job is to make us mess up.  The yatzer hora, or evil inclination, is so tricky and conniving!  He isn't going to tell ME to use my phone on Shabbos when no one is around.  Oh no.  He knows where my weakness are, and that is where he digs in.  When I give in to these temptations, I have veered off the path G-d wants me on.  Teshuva means to return to that path.
IT'S AN AMAZING THING!!!! For me personally, I have people who have hurt me in some way.  I have a friend who did something very thoughtless years ago.  I cut off contact with this person, because I can't see past what happened. Every time I think of her, I think of what happened.  It has colored the way I view her, and not in a flattering way.  There are people who we get into fights with, or we just don't connect with.  It's very hard to view the person totally objectively.  (I am speaking ONLY to myself here.)  Hashem is different.  When I am sorry, and I truly with all my heart regret a mistake I have made, Hashem completely forgives me.  Not only is not like it never happened.  Oh NO!  Hashem takes it one step further.  When I make a mistake, and regret it, and use it as a learning experience on how to come closer to G-d, He actually turns that mistake into a merit!  Imagine that!  An avaira (sin) becomes a mitzvah!!!  THAT BLOWS MY MIND!  How kind is Hashem to give us this wonderful.  Not only does He forgive us, He does it lovingly, with a very open heart.  We can use the power of teshuva to actually travel through time, and take a mistake and make it a merit!
The point of the whole post today is two fold.  First, to bring to light how huge this is.  In my book, this is one of the most incredible gifts Hashem has given us.  Second, we need to try and emulate G-d.  I know for me this is hard.  But one of the things I would like to try to do is work on being more forgiving and seeing past those long gone issues.  I'm trying to view each person as a new person.  Not the one who hurt me.  Oiy.  Now the big question is ... do I write to that person and try to re-establish a relationship? Or do I just move on?  What would you do?  Does being a forgiving mean reopening your heart with the chance it may get broken again?  Is that a lack of trust?  Does that show I haven't moved on yet?  Oiy.  Elul is such a deep and introspective time.  We are running out of days.  Use your last few days wisely!