"Since suffering as well as joy comes with being human,
I urge you to remember this: Violence in what happens
when we don't know what else to do with our suffering."
Parker Palmer
As an unfortunate incident washes over us, it seems to remove our confidence, value, and courage. Our self-reliance becomes scattered allowing holes for anxiety and stress to move in. How can one negative comment or an unexpected crisis cause our carefully built foundation to crumble?
Parker Palmer encourages us to embrace joy and pain every day to strengthen our hearts. This exercise creates the ability to open and close our heart without becoming totally shattered. We learn to gracefully embrace the pain and then re-open our hearts to the expectation of joy.
When chaos strikes, we readily recall all previous disasters when we have suffered greatly, instead of remembering the many times we bounced back with grace and courage. Our emotions will fuel our thoughts, so stockpile memories of resilience and endurance. Let our chosen response not be repressed anger and violence, but determination to safely reach the other side of crisis ... our hearts may break, but not shatter.
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