I think they want us to be silent.
It's amazing how silence is deadly. The longer you wait to speak
up about something that is hurting you, the harder it becomes. At least, a lot
of things have turned into regrets that way, for me.
It's hard to be honest in
a pretend world. It seems like people everywhere want you to be happy, even if
that means faking it. How many memes have I seen go by, touting "a smile
is better than a frown" or "just smile even if it doesn't mean
anything". The "grin and bear it" mentality is dangerous. Why
are we encouraged to deny what we feel? Why is it a societal abnormality to be
sad or heartbroken?
I remember a particular time when I was struggling with
depression and anxiety. I remember thinking "this is how all those people
feel - this is what it's like to have your heart broken." And in that
moment so many things suddenly made sense to me. A flood of songs, lyrics, and
stories suddenly rang true. This pain is what the whole of our race is feeling.
If you are a human, you have experienced pain. It comes in various shapes and
forms, yes, but we all have felt the sting.
Why then, are we silent about it? As humans, we are all in this
together. We are all living this beautiful life and each page of our story, one
day at a time. So why should we force ourselves to look happy when we are dying
inside? Why should we pretend for those that don't really care about us?
I feel that this fact keeps us alone, when we are
hurting....when we need other humans the most desperately. We don't want to be
"abnormal" or "weird" or labeled with one of those labels
that society comes up with, like "crazy" or "screwed up".
I have a message for you:
You are not crazy. You are not messed up. You are not ruined.
You are not finished. This pain is not going to last forever and you will
overcome. You are not alone in your fight. And we will sing together until this
silence is broken.
Because you deserve healing. And the beginning of healing is
breaking the silence around the pain you are going through.
You deserve to sing your song, even if it is a sad one. It
doesn't matter if the chord at the end can't resolve into a blissful major
note. It is still your song. This is still your story.
You deserve to say how you feel and still be loved and accepted.
You deserve life and love and the realization that hope will never leave your
side.
Don't give up. I believe in you. Sing it out. Xo
"Sing it out, sing it out.
Take what is left of me,
And make it a melody.
Sing it out, sing out loud.
I can't find the words to say,
You'll be my remedy.
My soul, my soul.
I sing with what's left of me."
--Switchfoot's Jon Foreman
