SEVENTY TIMES SEVEN
2011, HD Video, 10:22 mins.
Seventy Times Seven is a single channel video of seven Australian Aboriginal community members repeating the mantra, I forgive you.
Forgiveness is a gift you give to yourself. It is a release from the burden of anger and pain. When you choose to forgive, you choose to live in the present and the future instead of the past. It does not mean to forget but it does mean to release and go on.
I was a very broken person. When I look around at my community, the Aboriginal community, I see a lot of broken people. For me to stop being disempowered by the people and events in my life, my parents and my ancestors’ lives, I had to forgive. Forgiveness is the way to reclaim power lost. It doesn't happen on it's own, you must choose to forgive.
Everyone in this film is Aboriginal. We are choosing to forgive. Mercy is for those who don’t deserve it.