Thank you so much to everyone who left a comment on my last post.
Heather, Natasha, Jenny, Georgi and Tracy...and for anyone thats emailed, i really appreciate your support, and your friendship. Thankyou for taking the time to write about my post. I too felt a bit teary but in a good way! I do feel less alone when after writing openly,i recieve such nice messages back. I think i was doing it because i needed to get down my thoughts and feelings. I'm so glad that some of you found it helpful too.
I know everyones experience is unique,yet its amazing sometimes how much we can gain from hearing about anothers similar experiences. Sometimes they come from people in totally different circumstamces or walks of life, but have a resonance with your heart in a deep way.
That happened to me lately with Kate, who shared her story of being attacked and burnt with acid and how she has had to rebuild her sense of self, combined with going through many operations and wearing special masks to help the healing of the skin on her face. She is So beautiful, dignified, brave, and her spirit immense. If you get a chance to see it repeated on channel4 or their webste then do its called My beautiful face. She spoke so openly of her emotions and her fears and through her courage i was inspired to keep going, and to keep believing that someone is out there for me, that there is always Hope of better times and always a reason to go on living. Thankyou for sharing your soul with us through the program Kate,truly thankyou soooo much and i am wishing you well.
Some of you kindly wrote in the comments that my own story and outlook is inspiring. If its found so, its through being inspired, sustained and uplifted by other people and their stories and teachings that help me.
Though people can see it as admirable to be optimistic, sometimes its felt like less of a choice and more about "I simply Have" to stay hopeful -its like breathing- if i didnt have it,and the Love of my family, i couldnt have kept going. Thats quite a scarey thing, but also makes you very grateful and is humbling.
To know that we can't always do everything on our own, that we need others, isnt something that people in everyday life like to dwell too much upon. Yet really its just what all life is about ,everywhere around us we are relying on others all the time for things like food, electricity, mail, heating, news, medicine, education,clothing.. the list goes on. We can forget this inter-dependancy when we can manage so much of our lives for ourselves,get caught up in our own thing, and in a way that probably contributes to the pressures some people feel to maintain it all alone.
Whether leaning on, turning to, or sharing with; being there for other people, is what makes a family and a community. We are never islands, it just becomes more apparent when ill that we need support. But whether carer or cared for, I do think we all have something equally valuable to give and contribute. We all learn and grow and are inspired by one another. Xx kat
You are such a wonderful writer and capture emotions so well with your words. I love coming to your blog. It is such a wonderful, uplifting place.
(They did a news piece on Kate here in the US a few weeks ago. It was very moving!)
Posted by: Heather | November 10, 2009 at 09:45 PM