Life is Pretty and Poison

Last week I got poison ivy. The wind could blow my way and I'd have it. I finally went to the doctor and he gave me a steroid shot. Wouldn't you know it? I'm allergic to that too! It felt as if my skin was an itching fire. A few Benadryl rounds later, I felt sane again.

It's odd how a small rash can consume your mind until something in the world wakes you to greater suffering than your own. 

Until you hear about shootings in Kenya, or about a friend trying to stay afloat in difficult circumstances, or how a young wife and mother passed away after only five short months of fighting cancer.

Then in the same week you see the birth of a child no one thought would survive or a stranger risking their life to rescue someone they've never met.

Isn't that the way life is? Poison alongside tulips. Grief and heartbreak contrasted with babies being born and sunny days. It would be nice if life only held sweetness. The hard parts can consume us and make it impossible to think of little else. We need help. We need to know we're not alone in our struggle.

We walk together in this life so that when we're strong we can hold up the weak; and when we're weak, we can receive strength. We must do both, give and receive. 

After awhile the itch and pain may diminish. There may be moments of relief though perhaps alongside scars. But we can recover. Together.

If you are facing something horrible today, please know you're not alone. I'm thinking of you and if I could reach through the screen and hug you, I would. You are precious. Hang on.