Imperfect Erasure

When I'm not writing in some digital form, I'm usually writing in pencil. I prefer writing in pencil because it's erasable. If I make a mistake or if I think of any revision I want to make, I can change a few letters, or even a few words or sentences, without too much trouble. However, the process of erasing pencils is not perfect. Sometimes, even after erasing, some hints of the past writing can still be seen, perhaps even read. This is unfortunate for those who strive for perfection, but being imperfect is why we write in pencil.

It's also why we repent. When we make moral mistakes, we can repent and have our wrongs erased. However, even after our sins have been forgiven, there may still remain some hints about them. We and others might still remember what was done. Some old habits, or even just old thoughts, might remain part of us, even after we've started to repent. Repenting of sins and mistakes doesn't change the fact that they happened, and there may still be some reminders that they happened, at least in our own memories.

This can be a good thing. Remembering our past can help us realize how far we've come. It can help us sympathize with others and give them solid advice born from personal experience. And remembering the mistakes we've made in the past can help us learn not to repeat them. God may not remember sins once they've been repented of, but we do, and there are several good reasons for that. We came to Earth to learn from our experiences. That wouldn't be possible if we kept forgetting most of them. We need to remember our shortcomings for as long as have lessons to learn from them. So while our sins can be completely erased from our Celestial records, they probably won't be erased from our memories, at least not in this lifetime, not so long as we can still benefit from those memories.