“Mankind’s greatest achievements have come about by talking, and its greatest failures by not talking. It doesn’t have to be like this. Our greatest hopes could become reality in the future. With the technology at our disposal, the possibilities are unbounded. All we need to do is make sure we keep talking.”
― Stephen Hawking
It is good to ask for help.
I like to talk (stop laughing).
I’ve always loved to talk. And, I’ve gotten into a great deal of trouble because I love to talk.
But in usual God-is-so-kind-fashion, he has redeemed my “loose lips” and given me the beautiful capacity and opportunity to help others by “talking through” life’s stressors. Each and every day I sit with someone or someones, talking through the “its” in their lives, I recognize the privilege and find it more and more gratifying.
talk it through, v.
1. To discuss something thoroughly in order to come to some resolution: At the meeting, the employees talked through the issues and came up with a solution. We rarely fight, because we talk our problems through.2. To guide someone through some process: The fire chief talked us through the exit procedure step by step.
Friday was International Happiness Day. We were to share our happy with anyone and everyone.
All day long, I kept thinking about a special someone I had sat with the day before. For many years of her life, she’s struggled with anxiety and its very unkind cousin, depression.
Depression is an unwelcome fog that descends on anyone, anywhere, anytime it chooses. It seems to creep in slowly and somehow envelopes everything within its reach.
We’ve been talking through her anxiety and depression for almost a year now. After life-giving sessions where we’ve prayed through many, many things, Light is breaking through. She is feeling the anxiety lift and the foggy, depressed days be farther and farther apart.
“How does this feel?” I asked her.
She hesitated and took a deep breath.
“Weird,” she said. “Very weird. It is a tough transition.”
“Yes!” I cried out, losing my composure for a minute. “That is exactly how it should feel.”
When you’ve walked through life in the fog of depression, the first rays of sunshine are hard to bear. Your eyes have to adjust, don’t they?
People have learned to take one step at a time in the midst of depression. It doesn’t seem natural, though other people won’t notice either the awkwardness or the heroism involved. The trek begins with one step, then another. Remember, you are not alone. Many people have taken this journey ahead of you.
-Ed Welch
It is good to talk it through.
Ed Welch is right. It takes big, bold courage to talk your “it” through with someone.
Maybe today is the day to garner that courage. Don’t let one more second of one more precious day of your life be lived in the fog of anxiety and depression. Find your someone. A close, reliable friend. A trusted counselor or helping professional. I know where you can find one!
And join me in praying four very, very powerful words:
Let. there. be. Light.
Amen.
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