When it's Too Much

       I'll be the first to say, my life has been pretty easy. I am tremendously blessed and when I look at some of the challenges that others must face, I feel great admiration for them. I pray that they will be strengthened in their trial and I will admit that I thank God I was spared that particular challenge. But I also ask for similar strength, should I ever encounter such struggles.

      Every once in a while though, something presents itself in my life that has a much more powerful affect upon me than I anticipated. It may start out as seemingly benign and I think like any carefree, go-getter girl, that I can simply brush it off and continue with my life. But sometimes it's not that easy. Recently, I learned that some things will interrupt your life and demand more time and energy than you may be willing to give them in order to be processed and moved passed.

       My experience taught me at least two important lessons. First, there is a very real and pressing need for compassion in our world today. The kind of sensitivity and concern for others that makes you think twice (or three or four times) before speaking any words of criticism or censure. Compassion puts you on equal footing with your neighbor. To have compassion means to recognize that you cannot speak or think ill of another without hurting yourself as well. Compassion turns the (perceived) short-comings of others into common ground; an opportunity to form friendships instead of frantically erecting barriers. Compassion can heal and strengthen where criticizing will only rub salt into the wound, leaving it to fester and seethe anew.

       The second lesson was that when enduring a trial, you don't have to do it alone. How thankful I am for trusted friends, for a supportive spouse and inspired leaders who can counsel, soothe and and sustain me through whatever challenges I face. When I encounter something that knocks the wind out of me like this, emotionally speaking, I often have a difficult time determining if I ought to share it with anyone (I say this as I'm publishing my feelings on a public blog! See what a long way I've come?) I guess I worry that the matter may be too trivial in the eyes of others. Or perhaps I'll regret sharing it when tomorrow I feel relieved and no longer want to discuss the matter! At any rate, I was grateful for this experience in that it provided an opportunity for me to reach out and receive help from others. So much easier said than done sometimes. This was good practice and fortified my faith in my loved ones. I know I can count on them. 

       So let's consider how we all might bring a little more compassion into this world. Maybe instead of "a piece of my mind", what this world really needs is "peace of mind."