My dad has sexually assaulted me and was abusive towards my mother and I . It's not so much forgiving , it's more about accepting . I will never forget what happened, and will never forgive him for what he did.. But there comes a point where you realize that the more you hate and grieve , you're only hurting yourself more . In the long run .. You don't have to forgive anyone .. But accepting the fact that what happened well.. Happened and there's nothing that anyone can do to take it back, or fix it , is when you can truly accept yourself and move forward. You won't ever forget what happened, but believe that you're strong enough to push through that barrier that you've had up and move on with life. In the end, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.. And the stronger you are, the easier it is to move on and try to erase it out of your mind .