Well…I made it to the end of the month. I missed a few days here and there but kept it up for the most part.
Life’s been busy this past month and I didn’t get a chance to write about some of the things I wanted to, but there’s always next month.
I’ll leave you with something I’ve been thinking about for the past few days. I don’t think we, as a society, know very well how to “hold space” for each other. What I mean is that we don’t know how to deal with the darker emotions like regret, sadness, anxiety, anger… From my observation, when these emotions are expressed people tend to be quick to find an encouraging word or divert attention to something else. How well do we actually allow ourselves and each other to “sit” with the emotion for a while? Not to wallow in it but to acknowledge it, name it? Sometimes there isn’t a solution to the problem, sometimes life is hard and that’s just the way that it is.
How do we help each other in the midst of life’s “hardness”? I would suggest that we learn to sit with each other…in the mess…not try to “fix” it. But to sit and be with the person – to say “this sucks” and I’ll be with you in it. You’re not alone.
I know that’s often what I want to hear. That I’m not alone. Even though my circumstances tend to be beyond my control, walking the journey doesn’t seem quite so overwhelming when I know I’m not alone.
What a good reminder. Maybe that is why it is better to go to the house of mourning that the house of rejoicing?
You are not alone.
I agree. I think people feel less “seen” (and more alone) when they are in the ‘house of mourning’ than when in the ‘house of rejoicing’.