This past weekend I went to my sister, Susan’s for her son, Eldridge’s graduation.
It was really great, my three brothers and my sister were all together for parts of the weekend. My little brother, John, got engaged so we also celebrated for him and Denise.
My sister has an amazing deck that we sat at most of the time when we were at the house. In the mornings, before the kids got up, I sat outside with my brother, Richard and Susan. We talked about family stuff. It really helped me to be able to talk with people who knew where I have come from and where I wanted to go. The best part is that we are all trying to get emotionally healthy. We are all fighting hard to slay the dragons that have won in the past. My heart was so overwhelmed with love for them, they filled my love tanks to over flowing.
I lived in depression for 22 years. Occasionally, I poked my head out, but for the most part, I was depressed and sad. I was stuck in my sadness. When I was with my sibs this weekend we talked about some very sad things BUT the difference was that after we talked about them, laughed a little about them, I cried a little about them, we put the sadness away and had a great time the rest of the day. OH, it felt so healthy. I am pretty sure that is what healthy people do. We did not wallow in the sadness or get stuck. We took it out of the box, acknowledged it and then we put it back in its box and went about the business of celebrating life.
All the ladies at the Grove Park Inn
Richard encouraged me to relax. He is a pastor but this weekend he was just my brother. He assured me that God did not need me to work so hard, to quit striving and breathe. Debbie, my amazing sister-in-law, keeps pushing us to dig a little deeper. She loves seeing us growing and is a great cheerleader. Susan, my sissy, has been a warrior my entire life. She has stood up many times alone and forged ahead even when others (me) did not understand or approve. This weekend I asked her to forgive me for judging her during those times. She looked wrong to me, now she looks courageous, and I applaud her for fighting so hard to be healthy inside and out!
I came home refreshed. I came home feeling loved. I came home ready for the next leg of the journey. My sibs are my friends and my cheerleaders. Healthy is hard work sometimes but the rewards are so worth it.
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