A Path Any Could Have Taken

I think a couple of our best programs at our facility is grief and trauma.  I tell my students, I tell my friends and family, it is important that you tell your story.  To heal, to move forward, you have to tell your story.  If you do grief or trauma counseling, you tell your story.

Today a couple of the women who had finished their last day of group trauma came to my class afterwards.  It is always obvious.   Their faces show shell shock, their eyes show tears, their body language shows surrender.  I put aside my plans for the lesson I had planned to teach and instead taught a yoga class on love, on opening the heart.

If you are in an addiction program, there is not much self love in your life.  In fact there is a great deal of self-hate, guilt and anger.  Today I encouraged my students to open their hearts to love and healing, especially self-love.  To share love, to love others, you have to find love and compassion for yourself.

The women came into my room in tears, they left with smiles.  I hope they left with the understanding that they truly were worthy of love, joy and peace.  I talked with them about that feeling of being invisible,  of no one seeing you or hearing you.  I reminded them of their strength, after all it takes guts and strength to come to rehab.  It is not for the faint of heart.

Daily I see students who have lost their way.  Their spirits have withered and they think their hearts are beyond repair.  I look at them and see their beauty, their strength, their incredible minds.
It is my job, my purpose if you will to show them who they are, to remind them of their value. After all they are humans, someone's daughter, son, father or mom.  They are people you know who have taken  a path that any of us could have chosen.

Tomorrow is Wednesday, I wish you much kindness.