Left to Tell

Left to Tell by Immaculée Ilibagiza was an amazing book. It’s amazing in its honesty. Ilibagiza tells her story, the story of how she survived the Rwandan genocide. She talks about how her experiences drew her closer to God and ultimately how she learned forgiveness. Her honesty as she tells her story is something that really catches the reader and pulls them in. She doesn’t sugar coat anything, she doesn’t pretend that she never felt hatred or that she was always perfectly forgiving and without anger. She admits her great struggle and that honesty makes the reader want to keep reading, because they recognise that honesty.

This story gave me a new perspective on not only forgiveness, but keeping love in your heart instead of hatred. Ilibagiza went through a great struggle to be able to forgive those who were slaughtering her family. But not only did she forgive them and say those words out loud, she also fought to rid her heart of anger. She recognized how anger was adversary and she couldn’t get closer to God while she had that anger in her heart. It’s amazing to me how she changed and was able to develop a love for her enemies and it makes me contemplate how I can better love those around me. Instead of keeping anger in my heart, I can try harder to feel God’s love for His children.