Friday, August 28, 2009

On Healing

There are certain subjects I just hate to talk about. Some things make me uncomfortable, and others are just downright painful. When these topics pop up, I find the natural response is to pull back, withdraw from the conversation, and sometimes, shamefully, from the relationship itself.

A friend of mine is an occupational therapist, and she recently told me she has to massage the scabs and sensitive spots on the skin and muscles to toughen them up. If you keep them covered up, she said, they will become more and more sensitive and unusable for functional activities. The same can be said of our emotional wounds, my wise friend pointed out.

Convicted, I thought of all the circumstances in which I'd done exactly that. In a myriad of circumstances, my refusal to "go there" has taken me way beyond "touchy." As a result, that part of my life becomes dead weight--a memory, at best.

Next time, my friend cautioned me, don't be so quick to cover up those wounds reflexively. The anticipation is usually a lot worse than the actuality, she concluded.

Pretty healthy advice.

3 comments:

  1. I kid you not, we were just talking about this at our group the other day...wounds and healing. Love you...

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  2. I'm sure you've heard this song by Point of Grace--the words have spoken to me deeply...

    Heal the Wound
    I used to wish that I could rewrite history
    I used to dream that each mistake could be erased
    Then I could just pretend
    I never knew the me back then

    I used to pray that You would take this shame away
    Hide all the evidence of who I've been
    But it's the memory of
    The place You brought me from
    That keeps me on my knees
    And even though I'm free

    Heal the wound but leave the scar
    A reminder of how merciful You are
    I am broken, torn apart
    Take the pieces of this heart
    And heal the wound but leave the scar

    I have not lived a life that boasts of anything
    I don't take pride in what I bring
    But I'll build an altar with
    The rubble that You've found me in
    And every stone will sing
    Of what You can redeem

    Heal the wound but leave the scar
    A reminder of how merciful You are
    I am broken, torn apart
    Take the pieces of this heart
    And heal the wound but leave the scar

    Don't let me forget
    Everything You've done for me
    Don't let me forget
    The beauty in the suffering

    Heal the wound but leave the scar
    A reminder of how merciful You are
    I am broken, torn apart
    Take the pieces of this heart
    And heal the wound but leave the scar

    ReplyDelete
  3. Annie, this is one of my favorite songs...thanks for the reminder!

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