Monday Memo| Detail No.172| September 22, 2025|

Strife with the people we love is one of the hardest weights to carry. When family turns cold, when a friend walks away, when someone you trusted becomes a stranger, it leaves a mark you can’t just brush off. The weight doesn’t stay in the past; it lingers. It sits with you at the dinner table, follows you into quiet moments, and shadows even your happiest days. You can be in a room full of laughter, yet part of you is somewhere else, replaying a fight, remembering a silence that cut too deep, or hearing words spoken in anger that still sting. What once felt safe now feels fragile. Strife also breeds bitterness. The longer we hold onto the hurt, the heavier it becomes. What began as a misunderstanding hardens into distance. Pride builds walls where closeness used to be. Anger starts to feel like protection, but in reality, it keeps us trapped in pain.

The cost is high. Joy fades. Trust wears thin. Even ordinary days feel heavy because of the tension that hangs in the background. And what makes it ache the most? Often, it’s the people we never thought we’d lose closeness with.

But carrying strife forever isn’t strength ,it’s survival at best. Real strength is found in seeking peace. Sometimes that means picking up the phone, starting the hard conversation, or choosing forgiveness even when the apology never comes. Other times, it means quietly releasing the bitterness for your own sake, even if the relationship can’t be repaired.

Letting go doesn’t erase what happened, but it frees what’s ahead. It creates space for laughter to return without guilt. It opens room for love whether with the same people or simply within yourself.

So ask yourself honestly: Who am I holding strife with, and what is it costing me? If the answer is peace, sleep, or joy, maybe it’s time to put that weight down.

Life is too short to let conflict define your days. Choose healing where you can. Choose release where you must. And remember: freedom isn’t found in holding on tighter. Freedom lives in letting go.