Loyalty is a precious gift; and when it has been broken, experience teaches that it has been difficult – and sometimes impossible – to restore. Being able to restore loyalty requires a willingness to begin again, to literally forgive AND forget.
Consider restoring loyalty on a national level. Abraham Lincoln invited Secessionists to rejoin the Union “with malice toward none, with charity toward all.” A stunning example of a willingness to forgive the past and to re-engage rebels who had been disloyal to the USA as loyal citizens.
We often hear examples like this and think that perhaps Lincoln can do it, but in our own lives, we have doubted that such starting over with loyalty can actually happen. Such heroic actions are not limited to nations. We can experience them in our own lives.
What is your experience with restoring loyalty? We might start within: if you’ve ever been disloyal to yourself, have you been able to start over and re-assert your loyalty to your core values? If so, have you ever been able to do that with others? What are the limits to restoring loyalty, if any, and how do you determine those boundaries?