We Can All Do That

I have never read Shakespeare, so when I found this quote I knew I wanted to use it in my 5 Stages of Grief journal. I utilized fifteen different brush pens, or various inks and sizes. The first line is what caught my eye – give sorrow words. If we keep our emotions, grief or any other, bottled up inside us we eventually break. Our emotions are there to help us deal with things in our lives, they are the final element in understanding what is actually happening. When we ignore them they build up and break like a dam.

I spoke to someone who was mourning the death of a loved one. They thought they were okay and yet had no energy for Christmas. They were lost and told me it felt good to tell someone about it. Their loved one died many years ago, and still those emotions felt fresh and invasive, talking helped dissolve the urgency and sorrow. Giving our emotions words means they no longer have the power to control us, however it can take all the courage we have to let our words out.

I was reminded by that conversation that not everyone is having a joyous holiday season. Some people are in real pain, suffering with situations and emotions none of us can imagine. Let me encourage you to reach out to someone you know who may be having a tougher holiday season and listen to them. Let them know they are not alone AND that you are willing to help them find the right words to express what it is they are experiencing. You do not have to have a PhD in Psychology or be a trained counselor, all you really need to be able to do it listen. We can all do that, so do it this week.