And Life Continues

We all have bad days. It's part of the human experience. You can hear a song or a phrase that burps up a memory from long ago, or last week, and a feeling of sadness will overcome you. Or a feeling of oppression, depression, anxiety, whatever. Yesterday was one of those days for me.

One of the great features of the internet are blogs. I starting reading blogs when I stumbled across Dooce several years ago. She made me laugh. When the annual rewards would be announced, Heather would include a list of other nominees, or her favorites. That is how I found The Pioneer Woman. I became hooked on her self-deprecating common sense humor, and the beautiful photographs that she published. And then I started venturing into the world of creative blogs associated with scrapbooking and card making. Silly me had been buying magazines for inspiration. Good Grief, Charlie Brown, there is a multitude of ideas to inspire on the net.

And I came across this gem: Tammy Tutterow Designs and her personal blog for reflection, Bluebird Songs. I love Tammy's designs. I don't know nor would I ever ask what personal turmoil exists in her life. It is none of my business. But some of the bits and pieces of wisdom she posts are well worth repeating. The quote hit me right between the eyes this morning. It was exactly what I needed to read, to absorb, to take into my soul.

When deep injury is done to us
We never recover until we forgive
Forgiveness does not change the past
But it enlarges the future.
      Mary Karen Read

I had to forgive the faceless, nameless person who I charged with opening the gate and releasing Sarge. I have to forgive myself for allowing that to happen. If I don't, I can't move forward. I can't stand up and see the light, reach for the sky, and find some reason for life to return to any structure of normalcy. And I must forgive the insensitive people who utter such shit as, "You need to go out and get another dog this weekend."

Forgiveness enlarges the future.
Linda