Healing

When a five year old insists she needs a bandaid for a cut she got last week that "still kinda hurts though" it can be hard to say no. (at least after the fifth time..) I was in this situation where I was explaining to my step daughter that her scabs are not "bad guys" they're "good guys", who are helping her hurt skin feel better and making new skin.  (She has a phrase "you be BAD guy"  she uses anytime she trips, spills or looses control of whatever object she was miss using.) I started thinking about the process of healing, our physical abrasions go through such an obvious change but our emotional and mindful healing is nearly invisible.

Forgiveness- Imagine the scabs you might see on peoples chests if emotional healing happened more like physical healing. The parts of our heads where the mind was inflicted by traumas would be covered in a luscious protected layer. Would it be easier to talk about if these wounds left us with physical scars?
"Ou how did you get that nasty scratch?"
"Well... I fell out of love."
"Have you tried eating ice cream and being self deprecating?"
"Actually it's healing on its own pretty nicely, I'm just going to take care of it."

Acceptance- Ripping off the bandaids to uncover those scars will be painful, guaranteed. But not as painful as what has already been endured. Peeling those boo boo hiders off can be so satisfying. You've been careful in the shower and at the sink for weeks. Checking for the bandaid as soon as you wake up to make sure it didn't wake up on the wrong side of the bed. Applying ointments and letting it breathe when nesscesary. Then when that little itchy feeling starts to creep in, you know its healing and can't wait to reveal a new layer of you. Something happened, you survived, here's what it will be now. Scars are basically constellations the universe is arranging on us.

Changes- At first sight of an open wound it is not uncommon for ones entire life to flash before their eyes. As if the sight of a piece of our raw self provoked this realization that we are not impenetrable.
*One single tear follows.*
The secret is not to linger on the pain nor the process of healing. Sometimes the wounds that take longest to heal are the ones we're convinced still need this and that and those and him or her. Move on and don't look back because that is not the direction you're going. If you've been ridding the waves in the ocean of whatever your problem is, pull out a paddle and get going where you need to be!

My step daughter needed another bandaid for something on the back of her ankle. She didn't mention anything about anything all day then suddenly she says
"I need a bandaid here *points to achilles* before I go to sleep Raishieeee."
 Then of course she was totally immobilized by the feeling of the bandaid restricting her achilles ever so slightly.

 Pain slows you down, cripples our senses and distracts us from our sweet dreams. It can be a whole new type of awful when the aches are seemingly invisible. Forgiveness, acceptance and change are just the three headlining situations I chose to identify. Whether the sting lasts years or minutes don't waste yourself on what happened. Wield yourself as an instrument for healing.

Until next week, enjoy ripping the bandaids off those thoughts or emotions you've been covering up and not allowing to breathe and heal!!!!
 (kissy emoji)