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Darkest Hour

4 Aug

Life is filled with all kinds of experiences. Some of them are wonderful but dark times come to us all. We have disappointments, sorrow, pain and suffering. If the trial is severe enough we may be devastated and feel overcome. We may face very dark times as we try to navigate our way through. They say the darkest hour is just before dawn. Dawn comes every single day. We can count on the light returning no matter what the night has brought. But just before it arrives, we will have endured the darkness for the longest period of time possible. When we are struggling and hurt, and when we feel lost and hopeless it’s like being in that last hour of darkness. We can’t feel the light of hope or the anticipation of happiness. We may feel oppressed and weak, but the light always returns. Always. There will never be a day when the light will not arrive and bring with it the chance for healing. Just before that happens we may feel at our worst but we can hang on and wait for the sun. Even in our darkest hour we can remember the sun will rise.

Sometimes when we are facing very difficult situations we feel they will break us. We may think we can’t endure them or we won’t survive. Although we know intellectually they probably won’t actually kill us, we might feel their impact will be so great that we’ll never be the same again. It’s true that every experience changes us in some way, but we can always take the lessons learned and apply them to our lives in ways that will help us and not hurt us going forward. In reality, there is no situation we can’t face. We have everything we need to navigate even the most challenging trials. We can be confident that no matter what we’re facing we will find the answers and survive.

Some believe that every time we struggle a small bit of us is chipped away never to return. Like blocks of ice being carved they believe we can never be the same after something has been broken away. But we are resilient and able to heal from whatever life brings us. We can restore ourselves in time and no matter what has been lost, be whole again. Life teaches us with each challenge and if we lose something we held before, we can replace it with a richer, more thoughtful understanding. What we gain from overcoming hardship deepens us and makes us stronger. The superficial is scratched away and deeper perception replaces it. Every experience brings information and as we go, even in the darkest hour, we become stronger and richer.

Today if you’re struggling with a trial and feel overwhelmed or uncertain, there is an answer and you will find it. You are capable of managing whatever comes to you and you will prevail. There isn’t anything you can’t do. Remember the light is just around the corner. The darkness will lift and you will find joy. Be strong. You have everything you need to conquer and find happiness.

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On the Level

14 Jun

As we go through our lives we experience a lot of ups and downs, successes and disappointments, and give and take. We never know what each day will bring and sometimes things go well, and sometimes they don’t. As we navigate all the changes and challenges we adjust and accommodate whatever is happening to keep ourselves on an even keel as much as possible. We can usually cope with whatever comes and mostly take it all in stride. We know the importance of perspective and as we face each situation try to keep things as level as we can so we can move forward with confidence. But if something extreme happens, something unpredictable and devastating, we might find our balance upset and everything leaning to one side. Our perspective is slanted and we struggle to stand up straight. Although we all go through hard times there isn’t anything we can’t manage. We can figure out how to right ourselves and find our way but it may take time as we process everything that’s happening. When our world has been shaken and we feel unstable, and when the road we’re on feels rocky and unsure it’s sometimes hard to look ahead. But we have all the courage we need and all the inspiration required to make things right again. It’s all inside us. We need only take some time to find our way and we’ll be able to correct the balance again.

Sometimes we all wish we could see the future. It seems if we could know what’s coming before it arrives we could better prepare for it. That might be true, but knowing what lies ahead could work against us as well. If we are overwhelmed at what we’re going to face we may try to hide instead of face it head on. We really don’t know how we’ll respond to anything until we experience it. We are where we are right now, and we’ll respond to whatever comes to us when it arrives. We can draw on all the experiences we’ve navigated already and find our way through whatever happens. There is nothing we can’t face and nothing we can’t conquer.

There are certain things we all think we could never survive. The loss of a loved one, the betrayal of a close friend, or maybe a serious financial setback. We may think there are things that will break us and from which we could not recover. But that is never true. Nobody wants to go through devastating losses or face extreme disappointments but even if we’ve been knocked completely down, we can get back up again. There isn’t any problem without a solution. There is no storm that doesn’t end. Even if we’ve completely lost our balance and our world has been shattered, tomorrow will come. And we will find a way through. We have more courage and strength than we know. We have everything we need to conquer anything we face. We can reset our level, we can rebalance the scales, and we can move forward. There is nothing that will stop us from succeeding.

Today if you feel overwhelmed and devastated by something that’s happened, remember how strong you are. You have overcome so many things already. This is just one more challenge and you have everything you need to conquer it. You are strong and capable and you can overcome any problem. Look ahead. This is just a storm and it will pass. Move forward with confidence. You have everything you need to succeed.

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Mount Everest

19 May

When someone decides they want to climb Mount Everest, it takes a long time to prepare. They must have a lot of experience climbing other peaks before they attempt such an arduous journey, and they must be in top physical condition. Before they go they have to be sure they can manage the physical requirements that will be placed on them by enduring other similar experiences. The climb to the top will be long and difficult and the weather is always unpredictable. Additionally, they will need to interact with others in a way that will ensure their safety and support. It’s a big challenge and a serious decision. Going unprepared or unwilling to do what is needed could mean extreme danger or even the loss of life. Climbers sometimes prepare for years for this challenge, and even then sometimes don’t succeed on getting to the summit. It pushes them to their limit but the only way to know if they can do it is to try. And so they climb.

We may never choose to climb Mount Everest or any other mountain. But we will face extreme challenges in our lives that will push us to our limits and make us question our abilities. They may be physical challenges but often are other types of situations. We will all face big decisions, major disappointments, and changes in our lives that may make us question our ability to overcome or at times, even survive. Things don’t always go the way we want them to or even the way we think they will. And when there’s an unexpected ringer, something that rocks us to our core, something so disappointing or unexpectedly difficult we may, at first, believe we won’t find our way through. But no problem is so devastating that we can’t manage it. There is no change so pervasive that we can’t navigate it. If we trust ourselves, and lean on our proven capabilities, we will find our way.

There is really no way to prepare for the unexpected. We can try to live our lives to help us become strong, independent people capable of doing many things. And we will be tested time and again with problems and challenges, some big and some small. Every time we sort through an issue and find an answer, every time we push through a problem and get to the resolution, our skills for managing the unexpected are refined. Each day brings something new and as we face each situation, good or bad, we learn. It’s like preparing to climb a mountain. We carry a lot of weight that makes us strong, we make decisions that teach us how to proceed, and we keep moving forward and improve our endurance. This life is a journey. Every turn will bring something new. We have everything we need to face whatever comes and we can reach the summit every time.

Today if you’re facing a big challenge and it feels like you’re climbing Mount Everest, and if you’re struggling to keep going, dig deep. You have resources you’ve refined over time inside you ready to come forward to help you find your way. No matter how far the summit is, you will get there. You already have everything you need. There isn’t anything too big for you to handle. Keep pushing forward and the answers will come.

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How Long it Takes

15 Apr

When things go wrong or we suffer a painful loss, it’s sometimes hard to get over. We may grieve for a time, or suffer in other ways, and although we want it to go away, sometimes the healing process takes longer than we want it to. If it’s a serious loss, like a death of someone near us or a painful breakup, it may takes months or years to get through. Even devastating disappointments can take a lot of time for us to process and move forward. When we’ve been hurt badly, the damage can be all encompassing and even debilitating for a time. We might feel we can’t overcome it, and that we’ll never be right again. Grief and healing can’t be rushed. They have their own timetable and even if we think we should be over it, even if our friends and family tell us to get over it, we won’t get through until we’re done processing the loss. How long that takes is how long it takes. If we can’t accept what’s happened and hold on to denial we won’t heal until we can let go. But if we are determined to move forward, and do everything we can to face the change that has come into our lives, we will get through more quickly. There isn’t anything so difficult or painful we can’t manage. We just need to take it one step at a time and continue to take a step forward every day.

Devastating losses, no matter what they are, upset our lives. They impact us in every way. They may affect the way we feel about ourselves and others, or the hope we have for the future, and the trust we have that things will get better. If the pain is deep enough, even our personal faith may be shaken. We may question things we had previously believed were unshakable and find it hard to face another day. Human beings are incredibly resilient but we’re also incredibly fragile. If we suffer pain so great that we are rattled to the core, it will take time to put the pieces back together again. But our resilience is always there. It’s there even when we don’t feel it or can’t see it. It’s like invisible glue always ready to help us put things right again. It may take some time, and it will take determination, but we have everything we need to become whole and strong.

Suffering brings blessings. That can be hard to see when we’re struggling and everything hurts, but even when we aren’t aware of it, we’re growing and getting stronger. The greater the loss, the greater potential for growth. The experience of loss helps us learn how to gain. As we heal, even if we’ve been broken into a million pieces, and it takes all the courage we have to find our way back, at each step we gain strength. If everything was easy all the time we would be shallow and weak. There would be no need to learn and grow, and no need for emotional strength. The blessings of trials are great. If we can remember we’re gaining when we’re trying to recover from loss it will give us the courage we need to keep going forward. There isn’t anything we can’t do. We just have to keep moving forward.

Today if you’ve suffered a painful loss, no matter what’s happened you will manage it. There is nothing so painful that it will overcome you. You are stronger than you know. Flex your muscles, take a breath and move forward. Tomorrow move forward some more. You’ll get through this. And you’ll be stronger on the other side.

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Burns and Scars

4 Feb

Life is full of ups and downs. Sometimes we have fun and things go well, sometimes the bottom falls out and our dreams are shattered, and sometimes it’s some version in between. Nobody gets through their lives without being hurt from time to time, and when we’re really hurt and burned badly, it takes time to heal. If our dreams have gone up in smoke, if we’ve been betrayed by a loved one, or what we thought was real turns out to be a mirage, we can be devastated. Getting burned hurts. It hurts a lot and it takes time to recover. When we burn our skin, if the burn is very deep and serious, it has to heal from the bottom up. Dead cells must be removed from the top of the burn to allow it to heal more quickly and prevent scarring. The removal of that layer is often painful but necessary for recovery. When we’ve been emotionally hurt we have to do the same thing. We have to rub off the initial shock, confusion, and denial in order to get to the heart of the matter and recover. We can’t look the other way or the burn will never heal. It can be very painful to look at things completely when we’re devastated. It’s difficult to go through the process of removing obstacles to recovery, but if we do, we will be able to heal and go forward with renewed confidence.

When we’ve been hurt on the outside, after the wound heals we often develop a scar. If the wound was intense and very invasive, the scar may be large and thick. If we were only hurt a little, the scar may be smaller and smoother, but there is always a scar of some type after the wound heals. Over time scars refine and become less noticeable but they never go away. There is no way to be completely restored to our original state, and they will always be reminders of what happened to cause them. When we’re emotionally hurt and recover, we carry scars with us going forward as well. At the beginning if the scar is invasive and thick, it may keep us from making certain choices or feeling confident. Over time as we grow and change, just like the scars on the outside, the scars on the inside will refine. They will never go away completely, and we’ll always remember what caused them. But they will smooth out and we’ll find ways around them. Scars aren’t bad. They help us remember where we’ve been, and they need not hold us back. We can learn all we can from the experience and as we heal we can move forward.

As years pass, our appearances change through the normal course of aging. The laughter or sadness we’ve experienced show in lines on our faces. Our bodies show the wear and tear of life, and all the scars from all the injuries, large and small, we’ve endured. The lines, wrinkles, and scars are proof that we’ve lived our lives. We will never be the perfect beings we were when we arrived here, and everything that leaves a mark is a testament of our courage and endurance. We are going to get burned, in more ways than one, and we’ll carry the scars from those burns until we die. They are proof of how strong we are and what we’ve overcome. This life is challenging. There is a lot to learn. Sometimes we’re going to be hurt but there is nothing we can’t overcome. We will carry the marks, the lines, and the scars forward, but we will also carry the knowledge of what we’ve learned. And learning is what it’s all about.

Today if you’ve been burned by something that has hurt you deeply, you will recover. You will find your way through and you’ll carry the experience with you going forward, and it will not hold you back. You are courageous and strong. Be confident. You can do anything and you will succeed.

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