Antonio Florido Publishes "Forgive Dad," on Forgiveness
The Puerto Rican author dedicates his new book to the wounds left by the father figure and to forgiveness as a path.
Dr. Antonio Florido publishes Forgive Dad, a book about the wounds left by the father figure and the path of forgiveness, according to Altar7.
The wound no one tends gets inherited
No one chooses the dad they get. There are fathers who were physically present but never in the conversation: they came home tired, quiet, phone in hand. And there are homes where the dad simply wasn't there.
The hard part isn't just what happened back then. It's what that void does later, when you start choosing a partner, a job, or a church out of a lack you never named.
«The wounds no one tends become inheritances.»
The book examines that wound and proposes a biblical path to forgive and rebuild the family, according to Altar7. It's not a manual for assigning blame. It's an invitation to look at what repeats.
The wounds no one tends become inheritances. Not because there's an automatic curse, but because what isn't named gets copied: the same cutting tone, the same distance, the same habit of disappearing from the room when there's conflict.
Forgiving isn't saying nothing happened
Let's be clear: forgiving isn't justifying. It's not calling good what caused harm, or pretending childhood was something else, or signing a pact of silence. Forgiving is giving up the right to collect what's owed, and that's done before God, not before the one who hurt you.
"Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you" (Ephesians 4:32, ESV).
That forgiveness doesn't depend on the other person apologizing or changing. Reconciliation is something else: it needs repentance and truth. Sometimes it doesn't come, and setting boundaries is valid. If the wound comes from violence or abuse, don't carry it alone: talk to a trusted adult, your pastor, or a health professional.
It's also worth saying what forgiveness doesn't promise. It doesn't guarantee the relationship will be fixed or that the family will look like the photos. The other person may never acknowledge anything. Forgiveness is still possible because it doesn't depend on them.
What inheritance do you want to leave?
A cycle isn't broken by a feeling. It's broken by a sustained decision, and it almost always starts by facing what no one in your family wanted to touch.
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come" (2 Corinthians 5:17, ESV).
Think about what you carry without realizing it: the way you argue, the way you apologize, the habit of staying quiet. That's also inheritance, and it can also be reviewed. It's not about faking a happy family or forcing hugs at Christmas. It's about the next generation not receiving what no one wanted to name.
This week, write on a sheet of paper the name of the person you find hardest to forgive and one single possible action: pray for them, seek counsel, or stop repeating their mistake in your own home. What inheritance do you want to leave?
