Robert Enright, professor of educational psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a pioneer of forgiveness research, says short-term anger is “probably a good thing because it shows: ‘I am a person of worth – people should treat me that way.’” Your anger may be justified and if it does turn into a grudge, that probably comes with enjoyable feelings such as a sense of empowerment or self-protection. “But then there’s this tendency, if we’re not careful, for grudges to turn on us. Grudges are rather deceptive little things. Once they take hold in the heart, they become the unwelcome guest that doesn’t know how to leave.” They can transform into anxiety or blanket mistrust.
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