After a dear friend telling me about a hurtful experience she’d had this week…..I began thinking again about a story I have told a few times….a story that my children will tell to their children, and maybe even beyond that… because it was such a learning experience in our family….maybe even a turning point…it’s a story that I think about often because we were the main characters in it 3 or 4 years ago, and even though it was something that lasted less than 15 minutes….it changed all of us….and now I see others differently, especially when it seems that they might be main characters in the same story…or one a lot like it. I used to be too embarrassed to tell this story….but I am not anymore. This is a human story that everyone needs to hear, I truly believe this…I hope you will stay with it, it’s kinda long.
As we move along…I want you to think about some of the big signs with big messages that I bet you wish you could wear around your neck sometimes so that people would be more gentle….or even that you could put around the neck of someone you love….so that you didn’t have to go into a big long story to defend yourself or someone else….so that people would just stop judging and and just be kind.
First, if you don’t know my history because you are brand new to Brave Girls Club…welcome welcome welcome! I need to start this story by giving you a little bit of background….. you see, my husband had an accident in 2004 that injured the frontal lobe of his brain……it has taken 6 years to get him back……but in the middle there, between 2004 and now…lots and lots of stuff happened. He was essentially out of it…but not just that….he changed to someone else, we lost him. His personality changed completely, he could not work, he was angry and depressed and could not cope with human beings. He did not feel love or affection, really he only felt anger…rage…and he was suicidal most of the time. He did not remember a lot of things. He could not take care of our family or even himself, really……..(and I want to mention again that through lots of miracles, he is 100% recovered now…we are so thankful….he is even BETTER than he was before his accident)
But……during that time…..he would have these confusing and amazing glitches of time when he would be totally normal. It was bittersweet. They would last for an hour sometimes, and sometimes for days…or even weeks…then he would sink back down into that horrible place. When he was sick, I protected him fiercely. I didn’t want anyone to see him like that…I had faith that someday he would recover….but man oh man it was lonely…I wished every single day that I could just walk around with a sign like this….
….because on the outside…I looked like I had EVERYTHING GOING FOR ME…I looked like I might just have a perfect life….but I was hiding a very painful secret….
Well…a lot of other things happened too………you can imagine what might happen over the years while we have a 7 acre farm, a pretty big international business that we own with lots of employees…..a life that HE managed before his accident, while he just let me do the fun and creative stuff….now we had lots of medical bills…lots of sorrow and lots of distractions……we also had LOTS of kids…..and no one competent managing the business…
Well…after a few years, I couldn’t hold it all together…our business was suffering for all of the reasons listed above and a few more reasons on top of that……..and we discovered that we were really SINKING. Well……one day when he was partly lucid….he was THERE…he was coherent….I told him the condition of our life.
He kind of panicked and he went straight to work figuring out what he could do. It was insanely heartbreaking when he would “wake up” after weeks or months and I had to tell him how much things were deteriorating financially, etc. It was very hard. But when he could, he did what he could….before his mental illness sucked him back into the prison it kept him in most of the time.
He called a sign place and had a huge sign brought out to our house…the kind that you can put letters on, and it was electric and lit up…….He put it by the road in one of our horse fields……then he drove our Suburban….both of our trucks….my classic Thunderbird that he got me for my birthday a few years earlier…..our tractor…all of our tractor implements…the boat that I worked 10 years to get for him (and that caused his brain injury, incidentally)……….and he lined everything up along the fence and he put a price tag on every single thing. Then, he put the letters on that big huge sign and plugged it in.
You have to understand that we had worked for MANY years for those things. We started a business in our twenties and we sacrificed everything we had for all of those years to make it work. We owned almost all of it outright…….but, when I told him that the business was struggling….this is what he did….
Sooooo…..there it was….all in a row……all of our stuff…..out in our field.
All of the neighbors driving by…our friends…the community…..people who knew us most of our lives and people who knew nothing about us…..we were just the young family who lived in that beautiful little farm house on Beacon Light road with the perfect lawn….or what USED to be.
You see, in addition…for months….our once beautifully manicured yard started to be filled with weeds that were now several feet high. I just couldn’t keep it up. The lawn was a nightmare. Everything was just falling apart all around me and my heart was broken over my husband, too. It was humiliating and exhausting and horrible, really.
Well, the sign was not up in the field for more than a few hours…….when my husband’s phone rang….it was someone who saw all the stuff and my husband’s phone number on the big huge sign. We were sitting out in the yard while he was still coherent and he was feeling devastated about the condition of our lawn…..I was apologizing that I just couldn’t do all of it………..he was so heartbroken at his limitations and that he had left me to try to handle our life alone……we were trying to make a plan…..
He answered his phone…I saw that he was just listening…I could hear that the person’s voice was getting louder and louder and louder………..my husband just listened. He turned his back to me a little so I wouldn’t hear. But I could hear it….It seemed to go on and on and on……..
These were the things I could hear on the other end of the phonecall….
“You are bringing down the value of my property with that ugly sign!”
“What are you doing?”
“That is the most obnoxious sign, do you have a permit to have that out there?”
“Are you starting a used car lot?”
“You have got to get all of that moved and out of here or I am calling the authorities”
I sat there, mortified, embarrassed, humiliated, mad, sad, devastated. I was certain that this would snap my husband back into his dark hellish place.
But, when the man was done ranting, my husband waited a second and then very calmly said something that I will never, ever forget…….
“Sir,” he said, “There was a time in this country, in this community…when if you drove past your neighbor’s house and saw every single thing they own was for sale in front of their house…and that their lawn had not been mowed for weeks….that you would stop and say….WHAT IS GOING ON, SOMETHING MUST BE TERRIBLY WRONG, WHAT CAN I DO TO HELP YOU?”
The man was silent…..and then my husband went on to tell him a few details about what was going on with our family….
The man waited a moment and then his tone changed…..he apologized….I mean, really apologized and then said…
“I am going to call all of my friends and see if any of them need any of this stuff….”
***************************************
I wish with everything in me that we could have put a sign up on that big stupid lit up billboard in our field that said OUR LIFE IS FALLING APART…. but all that we really could put up is a sign with the price of everything that we owned that was worth any money…….
WHAT IF we could all wear a sign that said what WE REALLY MEANT? What if we could go straight past the small talk……..or the masks…….and we could actually go straight to the heart of the matter…….what if our friends and family wore signs like this?
…we would treat each other differently.
I think we should just try to imagine it………that when a friend is quiet…or not showing up to stuff she usually shows up to….or acting a little “off”….or a family member is wearing pajamas to the grocery store for weeks on end……or not answering the phone…..or the lawn is not mowed…..
whatever it is……….
IT IS A SIGN. It is not a sign that can be read in words and letters, but it is a sign that someone needs to be treated gently…that they need help….most of all, that they need love, understanding…and that they DEFINITELY DO NOT need to be judged.
Every time I think of this story….I want to be better…I want to do better, I don’t want any silent signs to go unread before my eyes or my heart…..I don’t want to make up my own answers to what must be going on…I don’t want to assume………..
Let’s be gentle with each other.
Let’s read each other’s signs.
HAPPY NOVEMBER….so much to be thankful for!
xoxo
melody
Thank you!
Melody,
A friend of mine just posted this on my FB today (September 2011), and at first she thought I might have even written it – until she got deeper into your story! My husband was in a severe car accident nearly four years ago, and also has a brain injury. Part of his frontal lobe is dead, and he is now blind in one eye, and has no taste or smell. I thank God he is even still with me! We still struggle too though. Fortunately he still has most of his personality, but he is still a changed man. He too has trouble with understanding “why,” and anger, temper control. I am waiting for the day when the Lord will heal him, whether it’s on this earth or when we get to heaven! Selfishly I hope it will happen here, and now! I’m not sure if I’ll ever get to the place you’re at, but with the Lord’s help we get by day by day! Thank you for your understanding and your encouraging words. You’re still affecting people, even months after you’ve written this!
“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a great battle.”
- Philo of Alexandria
I am sorry for what you and your family have gone/and are going through but thank you for this wonderful lesson that we all need to learn…I know I need to learn it,so I thank you!God bless you and your family!{{{HUGS}}}
Wonderful read. Thanks!
I just wanted to take a second to say wow. It’s amazing how powerful this is. I’m so glad to hear you had a happy ending!!
I just wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your blog. I seen it on a friends Facebook page and decided to take a peek at it. I couldn’t stop reading it and before I knew it I was looking for the tissue box. I myself have dealt with A LOT of pain and suffering due to a vehicle accident my husband was involved in (when he was 18 years of age) He is now 37 and it is still effecting us ALL. We have 5 children and it’s been very difficult. I’m going to show him your blog. I am sure he feel’s he’s the only man in the world going through this… He will see there are other people far away dealing with greater problem’s and they have overcome them. I’m going to share your Blog with my friends as well as on my blog (I hope you don’t mind)
Thanks again,
Monica
Dear Heart,
By the time I finished reading this beautiful post, I was sobbing like a baby. It is so true, you never know what is going on with others – we are more alike than we are different – everyone has problems – things they are dealing with – thank you for your wonderful inspirational story that reminds us all to walk a little softer and to be a little kinder. You all are certainly in my prayer jar…… may things continue to improve, I have a wonderful feeling they will, your love has surly been the conqueror…… blessings and love to you and your family, xo Karen
Wow. I am humbled. This made me weep.
When I was a teenager, many, many moons ago, I came up with this expression for myself: “Everyone has a story.” It was a way to remind me when I was frustrated with someone or angry, to take a breath and remember there is a person there with their own full life that may be affecting their actions in ways I can’t imagine. I know I haven’t always used it as oft I should but your story has reminded me to pull it out more now than ever.
I’m sorry for your hardship and wish you peace.
I just read this (Sept 2011) and I love how you said what everyone in this world needs to hear.
I found this post through The Bloggess. It brought me to tears. I am going through hell right now, and my life has fallen apart and I am picking up the pieces. I wish I could wear a sign like that. Thank you for sharing.
What a great reminder – we all show signs that we try to hide – and we all need to be more aware.
Thank you for sharing. What a great reminder to everyone to be a little kinder.
Magnificent writing. Very inspiring. I am also glad to hear that you got your storybook husband back.
Many many blessings.
What a incredibly inspirational post! Thank you so much!! There was also something very familiar about your story when I realized you were the the woman my friend Bev spoke to me about several years ago after meeting with you. You have touched more people than you could know. God Bless you .
I’m so glad you re-posted this. It was an awesome reminder of what we all need to remember (be gentle, everyone is going through something). Thank you for sharing your personal story with us. xoxoxo
When my husband passed away of cancer, my daughters were 11 and 14. I remember going about my days wondering what people would think if they knew what this pleasant, seemingly put together person had just gone through. Then it made me think of all the people I see who seem to be pleasant and put together and the bottom has dropped out of their world and no one would ever know by just looking at them. Thanks for sharing your story!
Thank you so much. I have a neurological condition that has made me lose normal functions. The big one for me has been bladder control. I had “accidents” in high school and was made fun of… But it was something I could never learn to control. I got a catheter after that and it was embarrassing to wear because people would ask about it. I since then have had surgery and use disposable catheters. I still have issues from time to time but now I think I know how to handle it. Be who us am and share it
Thank you!!! I have teardrop in my eyes from what you went through. I have a lump in my throat because I can identify with this in so many ways, I have a chronic illness that is not notable on the outside and so many people can be less than kind. God bless you and your family!
Beautifully written! Thanks for sharing this important life lesson. Too often we don’t say what we mean in life and assumptions are made which bypass opportunities for helping others.
If I wore a sign around my neck it would read:
“I NEED FRIENDS”
Two years ago I lost my dream job and since I could not find a new job for over a year, I decided to have my third baby and stay home caring for him.
I had a handful of close friends two years ago.
Two friends have moved far away. One friend got engaged and dropped of the face of the planet. My last good friend got sucked into working 60 hour weeks and has no time to be a friend anymore.
So I have no friends.
I have family. I have my DH. I have my children.
But not one single friend. It feels shameful sometimes. I always had friends. I was a sorority girl in college, after college I always was surrounded by people.
Now I find myself without friends. It’d painful. It’s sad sometimes. It is something that I must change in my life as friendship is so valuable and without it life is not as colorful as it should be.
So if you have friends who color your life, be thankful for them. I never thought I would be in this situation. But I have learned to appreciate and when things change I will change too.
I just read a story about a young man who killed himself because he was bullied for being bisexual. I cannot imagine the pain and suffering this poor child endured, so much so that he felt he had to end his life. My heart aches for people like this, people who have so much turmoil in their lives and who are trying so hard to make things look “normal” on the outside when their insides are anything but…
We had a similar event in our family. After my husband & I were married about three years, my father, brother and brother’s friend were in a horrible automobile accident. An eighty-something year old man swerved into their lane on a 2-lane road and hit them head on. Brother’s friend died, brother had scratches, cuts, bruises & Dad had a horrific head injury.
He was in intensive care for a month with bleeding ulcers & a trach. He didn’t know us in the beginning. He couldn’t speak because of the injuries, had lost much of his memory and when he tried to speak it was gibberish. Finally after a month they moved him into a 4 bed room. The doctor said he wanted the 3 other men in there in case they needed to call someone for my dad. He was in that room for over another month.
My parents had a small hardware store that the two of them ran by themselves. My husband took some time off from work & my adopted brother (not the one in the hospital) took vacation time and the two of them ran the store for a week so my Mom could be at the hospital during the days.
The man who ran into them had died at the wheel. We found out that he had had so many accidents that his wife & family had taken everything out of his name except a small insurance policy (the smallest amt. for bodily injury allowed by law in our state). They knew this would eventually happen. They thought he had a heart attack while driving. Three wives were left in a terrible situation because this family chose to let that reckless old man continue to drive. I wife was a widow. My brother’s wife just had to take care of him until he could heal up from his injuries. My mother & I had to take care of my dad for the rest of his life. The accident was in 1969. My dad lived until 1991. He never spoke more than a few words, never could work again, or drive. He had to take medication for seizures that started with the severe head injury. My mother had terribly high hospital & doctor bills and the three parties split the very small insurance payment 3 ways. Mom had to work and pay off the rest of those bills. She hired a retired man to help her at the store part-time & when dad was able she took him to the store so he could sit there with her while she worked.
The rest of us had jobs as well and had to work.
It was hard to have to explain to strangers why he couldn’t speak. It was harder to hear people make fun of him because of the sounds he made when he did speak. There was much heartache for our family. I worked during the day at my job & helped Mom at night by paying the bills for the store & balancing the checkbook for her.
She and I took turns taking him to doctors, etc. but the load was on her shoulders. She took him to church every Sunday. She made sure he was in his Sunday School class. The men in the class were so kind & good to him. I praise God for them.
When he died she thanked God for letting him live as long as he did so she wouldn’t be alone. We finally moved her in with us after she had a stroke.
This life can be so hard and some people make it harder. I’m so thankful that the Lord carried us through those hard times & pray that people will be kinder to one another but even people who profess to be Christians say harsh things they shouldn’t. Please, remember Jesus’s golden rule!
Fran McDonald
This story is beautiful and moving. I love your message and I’m so grateful that you’re telling it. Thank you for the reminder.
I also wanted to compliment you on your writing and the artisitc way that you illustrated this story. Its gorgeous! Did you come up with the concept for the photos? Did you take the photos yourself? I’m so impressed with all of it.
I’m going to be thinking about this story all day- hopefully I’ll be thinking about it always.
Oh. My. WOW. Thank you for sharing and being so transparent!
After our son died I remember telling my husband, I just want to put up a big sign that said, “My life has stopped right now and right now I feel like the whole world should stop right along with me. But everyone keeps going about their business like life is great! It’s not and it sucks!” There were times that someone would say something or do something and I just wanted to scream, “I’m going through a lot right now, I just buried my son!” Someone would honk their horn when I was vegging out at a stop light and I wanted to throw my car in reverse and run them over or get out and give them an ear full.
I know I’m not alone! I know that each and every one of us has a story of when life just sucked.
This is just a reminder that while that period in my life may be over, someone else is going through it right now.
Thanks for the reminder, this story touched me more than you will ever know. I appreciate ever word you wrote and the pouring out of your heart.
I run a MOPS group at my church and I forwarded this to them, I think this is an important part of our ministry – We Must See Past What It Seems!!!
Thank you fromt he bottom of my heart!
this hits home for me. even a little too hard. I appreciate your words so much; they have touched me. One of my good friends discovered your story and shared it with me — I wrote a short blogpost that is similar in sentiment and hope you might come by for a visit: All Things Purple http://iheartpurplestuff.blogspot.com/2011/07/bit-of-small-talk.html
thank you so much for this!
Great story and thought! I learned this lesson as well and of course it feels like the hard way. My little son died 7 years ago. I remember looking at people and wondering if they could tell by looking at me that my heart was broken. And then I thought if people can’t tell that I am bleeding on the inside by looking at my outside, what pains are they suffering from that I can’t see? It has made me a better person and much more gentle with my fellow man.
Wow, just wow. How much EVERYONE in this world needs this right now. I shared it on my FB and I hope that EVERYONE I know does the same and that EVERYONE reads it. Wow. Thank you.
Thanks for the inspiring story. It’s actually really motivational. I myself have been really sick. I live on my own right now and haven’t had the strength to take care of my apt. so needless to say it is pretty disgusting. People who know me would know that something is wrong when I haven’t vacuumed or done the dishes in days but the people who don’t see this messy apt and think, Wow that is nasty! It hurts because it is not who I am and unfortunately everyone judges a person by appearances of themselves and of there possessions. I have friends who won’t even come over ever again because of it.
I have started recovering and finally cleaning my apt. So it actually looks pretty decent right now. It still hurts that my friends think so negatively of my apt. even though I have explained the situation to them they still are hesitant about coming over.
Luckily I do have those friends who actually have come over at times just to help me. those are true friends.
Thanks again for the great inspirational story and I am so happy to hear that your husband has recovered, Congratulations on that and on being so strong in the whole situation.
You have a lot of comments so I don’t know if you will read this but thank you for sharing this. It is interesting when we come across things in life at just the time we need it.
Have you heard of The Four Agreements. When you talked about not assuming anymore I thought of The Four Agreements. It is a book and philosophy. I listened to it and it is a serious life changer. It seems like it is in line with what you are doing now.
Anyways, thanks again.
This was SO powerful…and it gave me more resolve. I have been trying to do this more lately. It gets hard sometimes when you really CAN’T help someone more than to just listen. Your heart breaks for them over and over and OVER again. Thank you so much for being vulnerable…opening yourself up and allowing people to feel for you. Compassion is a wonderful compass, and when all else fails it can point you in the right direction. =)
Thanks so much for this. I wish I could wear a sign. My husband has a mental illness and he too goes through swings of non-functioning leaving me to run the business he owns plus I have a small business of my own. Not to mention the house, yard, kids and everything in between that I am sure you are well aware of. On top of all the actual things that need to get done in a day it’s the emotional weight. The part where you have lost your friend, the fact that you are holding up and holding together so many things but feel like there is no one around to hold you up or pick up the pieces if you happen to let one slip. We used to live in the star area and have recently moved….the one person who actually knew what was going on and I didn’t have to put a mask on for is now hundreds of miles away and I truly miss being able to let my guard down and let my true colors show and the tears flow. I truly wish I could wear a sign – not for pitty or so anyone will say “wow, look at all she does” but just so that I don’t have to feel so guilty when I can’t do EVERYTHING, that I don’t have to feel bad that I can’t also do the school fundraisers and a lot of “extra” stuff. Others look in and say – she is a stay at home mom with 3 kids…why can’t she do it. They don’t see that I am already doing EVERYTHING and I just wish somedays I could wear a sign.
A friend sent me this link in response a post I put on face book saying much the same thing with out all the personal details. Your story has touched me because as I read on I could think of all the times people have made assumptions about me and if they really knew the details they would respond differently. I hope and pray that God gives me the wisdom and insight to see the secret signs o others wear so that I may be more gentle in my response and offer an shoulder to cry on or a word of encouragement. .Thank you for your humility to share your story! I am so glad that it ended well!
This is fantastic. Thank you!
That was one of the most amazing and poignant stories I’ve ever heard. It truly touched me because my son is autistic and while the public is becoming more aware of autism and Aspergers, people still treat him differently…even my inlaws…and family is supposed to be the one place where we’re all accepted. Sometimes I wish that he could wear a sign that said “I’m autistic. I’m also brilliant and funny and I want friends so badly, but don’t know how to approach people. I spent most social situations sitting alone wishing someone would invite me to join in the fun.”
I hope that you don’t mind, but I based one of my blog posts about this story. It really hit home with me. I used to spend a great deal of time feeling really angry at the people who don’t want to include my son…even family does it. We spent a week with family this summer and they were showing off photos that they took from the reunion….not a single picture of my son in the batch…after an entire week spent with him. There were plenty of my other two children, just none of him. It broke my heart to see him so carelessly omitted.
I am working hard to let go of my hard feelings and trying to remember that sometimes the sign some people need to wear is “I’m ignorant. I can’t help it. I was born this way.”
http://365happythings.blogspot.com/2011/09/273-whats-your-sign.html
This blog was amazing!!!
I like to say that it changed me for the better!
People really have a hard time with what they can’t see! I am so sorry that that happened to you!
I want to say I kind of understand what that is like I am just the opposite side of the story.
I am a 23 year old girl and on November 17, 2005 I was in a car accident. I was in a coma for 2 1/2 weeks. I damaged the right side of my brain. When I woke up from the coma I lost control of my whole left side. I worked really hard and got my left side back, but I must say it still is a little weak, and now I have epilesy.
I do wish people would take a step back and get to know someone before they judge them. I loved how your husband didn’t get angry at the man that was just getting angry at him. I loved how he just opened that man’s eyes, and made it so the man would do anything to help you both! I am so happy you wrote this… I hope alot of people read it!
Something that really made me get up and get out…Something that I love to do is work with a dance group that has down syndrome. I have been doing this for awhile. Seeing and working with people with down syndrome really opens your eyes! They are so amazing!! They really know how to touch your heart! They know that they have a disability, but it’s like they are just happy to be alive. It makes you realize that you just need to take a step back, be kind, and just be happy you are alive! Being a person with a disability and working with people with a disability makes you just want to take a step back and be happy to be around such happy amazing people.
I am sorry that you have had to go through having your husband having suicidal thoughts!! :”( I have got to say I have had that experience myself and I don’t know what it is like for the opposite person. I just know that I called my mom and slept at her place the night I was having those. I am just really sorry you had to go through that!! I am also really sorry my mom had to go through that!
I also found it interesting how you said that your husbands head injury changed him. My head injury change me also!
You are such a strong amazing woman!! I really look up to the people who can manage people with Tramatic Brain Injuries!!! We look completely normal, yet we have such a hard time doing specific things! It is to bad that we can’t wear things around our neck explaining to people what we are going through! Pretty much all head injuries are different too! It would make life at least a tiny bit more easy!
I loved your blog!!
Good luck with everything!
Love,
Bonnie
thank u for sharing your story of courage and humanity. many of us feel less alone w this. keep on.
What an amazing story!
In 1974, when I was 20 years old, I had a stroke. I was totally paralyzed on my right side.
I had to relearn to walk & talk, a process that would take months and years. My stroke definitely took a hit on my personality and intelligence too, for a few years. Back then, I was sometimes taken aback by the number of people who made assumptions about me. Some of these were: that I must be a drug addict to have a stroke at such a young age, that I was really lucky to have a husband who would stick by me after a stroke, and that if I just loved Jesus enough he would reach down from heaven and cure me from my ailment just as he had for some reason become displeased enough with my behavior to reach down and smite me with said ailment in the first place;) The TRUTH is that I’m not a drug addict, I did have a heart disease, for a few months which was the direct cause of my
stroke, my husband didn’t even meet me until a few years after the stroke and I don’t believe in a God that makes bad things happen to people because he is upset with them.
I’ve had a number of hardships in my life but I’ve recognized that my blessings more than balance out my hardships. I have a wonderful husband, children, grandchildren, siblings
and parents. I have a number of other blessings. But people never know what other individuals are going through, at any given time.
Thank you. My husband has been away for awhile and I’ve felt the strain and burden it puts on us and on me. I love what you have said and it has helped me to be better too.
Thank you for sharing your story. I hope your family is thriving!
Thank you so much for your inspiring story. I do believe this wholeheartedly. If only we knew what the circumstances were…However, why must we judge and have so much of an opinion about other people’s lives. It is truly disheartening to me to hear so much unacceptance of others. We are all different…I truly admire stories like this which can be far reaching. Thank you so much for sharing.
Wow. I think that you are a Godsend to all of us reading your post; you have been courageous enough to share your life.
Thank you for waking me up to try to recognize the needs of others. We live in such a busy world that we miss out on “loving on our neighbour”.
Amen to your story.
Wow! I honestly don’t even know what to say. My friend shared this blog with me, and can I tell you that this came at a very needed time! I’ve been struggling with some personal things for a long time. Nothing real major, but have been feeling a lot like what you said. If I could just wear a sign around my neck, and let people know what we are really going through. Maybe they’d understand. Maybe we could all be a little nicer, a little more understanding to those around us.
I just really want to thank you for sharing this story. I can’t imagine what all you and your family have had to go through these past years. From reading this one post, I can tell that you’ve grown so much through it all. Thank you for being “Brave”, and sharing with all of us these amazing stories! I know many lives are being strengthened from your words, and your own personal life stories. God Bless you and your family!
What a beautiful story with beautiful characters. I sit here with big tears rolling down my cheek because your story hits home in many differnt levels. Thank you for the reminder that everyone has something going on in their lives that we may not know about and to be more gentle and aware with one another.
Just recently, our neighbor noticed that our lawn was becoming overgrown and taken over with weeds, he took it upon himself to mow it for us. This came at a time where my husband has been working a lot of overtime in efforts of making up for my lost wage; I had just recently been laid off. My awakening, which your story has pointed out is that, I need to say thank you, I mean, I thought it in my head at the time, I thought, “Wow that was really nice of him”, but I didn’t thank him personally. Which I should. I need to be more grateful to these kinds of gestures as they are becoming a rarity in this day and time. Thank you, you have inspired me in more ways then one, even when it comes to me being on the flipside of the moral of the story.
This is beautiful! I wasn’t planning on crying today.
I read your blog yesterday for the first time and really appreciated it. I shared it on my FB because I think people need to remember that everyone has something going on in their lives. I believe in treating others as you would want ot be treated regardless of what you think of them and this post reminds us of that. Then tonight I saw a video that made me think back to this blog … http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyX-I-um5Kk Its “Beautiful Heartbreak” and talks about how heartbreak and trials we face and cope with make us stronger and who we are. Very inspiring when you are down and need a lift. The artist is Hilary Weeks and this is on her new CD that just released today. People need us to see past our exterior and see our hearts … I wish we could all do that. People being willing to open up and share their stories as well as artists like Hilary help lift all of us who are facing trials.
this is beautiful! I just listened to a song yesterday that goes right along with this post –
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=xyX-I-um5Kk
thank you for sharing, for allowing us to feel your beautiful spirit
Excellent! YES! YES! YES! We there was just some way to get this out to the world!!!!!
THANKS FOR SHARING and I will Certainly SHARE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!