Among the lessons presented in the Transformational Community Development (TCD) program was the topic of bitterness and the extent of its impact on the individual psychologically, socially, and health-wise.

Hanaa, a mother of three very young children, said that before listening to the lesson, she was filled with feelings of bitterness toward her husband because of the way he treated her. She was unable to forgive him for his hurtful words towards her, and she began to feel bitterness towards him. This affected her feelings, took away the true joy from her life, and caused psychological discomfort. After she heard the lesson from TCD, Hanaa explained, “I decided to get rid of my feelings of bitterness.” She began to take steps to stop blaming her husband, forget the insults, get rid of the anger inside her, and forgive him for his hurtful words because she learned that bitterness really only harms her life and her home.

Another subject of the TCD lessons was lying and stealing and how to tell the truth despite possible punishment. A child, Irene, participated and shared, “I used to take things that were not my own without anyone knowing I was at the sweets shop, and I did not tell the truth to my friends and family, so that I could escape punishment and people would see me as a good person. After I heard the lesson, I knew that this was a big mistake and that this would make my family, friends, and teachers upset with me. I decided to change, tell the truth, and not lie or take anything anymore.”