I think in my case, the hardship and adversity I have faced over the years has most definately helped me grow as a Father, Son, Friend and just basically as a person. The trick as always is to be able to look at those kind of situations and not get caught up in the "what happened to me" bit and focus on the "how can I learn from it" point of view.
That is MUCH easier said then done. But like a lot of things I've learned, you practice it as you go along and it becomes a part of how one does things, how you live life.
I have had some experiences that I would call horrific, one in particular so senseless and violent that over 35 years later it makes even less sense then it did then. Of course I kept thinking I somehow had "earned" what had happened to me...I was a very emotionally sick and wounded young person at that time.
Some of the other experiences, mostly self-inflicted but were also pretty much senseless in their own right. One of the positives, as I see it that has come from surviving and living through such trauma is it certainly has made me more aware and compassionate about the suffering of others.
It has been that way for a long time but it wasn't until I got clean/sober though that I was healthy physically, mentally, emotionally and finally spiritually...to actually act on my compassionate leanings.
Where am I going here? Well I know that most people have heard of the shootings in Tucson, AZ where 19 people were shot, 6 of them fatally. Because that isn't the focus of this post, I am not going to recount the details of that day but if you would like a little background info here is a link.
Of course the most well known of those killed was Judge John Roll and there were 5 others including a 9 year old little girl, Christina-Taylor Green who was born on 9-11-2001. The most well known of those wounded was the apparent target of the attack Gabrielle Giffords. Then of course there were 12 others wounded.
The focus of this blog today is one of those, who I will not name other then to use her blog handle: Ashleigh Burroughs.
I discovered the blog site: The Burrow some time after the attacks and I can't really recall how. And it doesn't matter.
I simply want to share this web site here so others may read it as well. Here is a grown woman who has had her life ripped apart (along with her body) and is recovering from that and posting on the blog as she goes. It's an incredible testament to the human spirit.
I know, HUGE cliche there but all I can say is: YOU read her posts and tell me I'm off base here! As tragic as this whole thing is, she brings an incredible sliver of hope to all of us. I read everything she has posted on the site and I will just say this: I am a better person for reading it.
I believe she originally used the pen name Ashleigh Burroughs but because the shootings were so public it has become obvious who she is. So if you'd like, you can figure that out for yourself. To me it's not necassary to know to benifit from the reading.
And that is all I will say. I'm not going to comment on the event, it's public knowledge and what happened that day is well documented. Like Ashleigh herself, I like the notion of looking forward, thinking of the future and how to live...so that is my focus here as well.
I will finish this morning by adding a link to her post from yesterday. My suggestion to a new reader would be, read this post first: How Am I ?
For all of my experiences, the agony of rape and the horror of attempted suicide...this story truly wounds me to the very core of my spirit. And then LIFTS me way up, above all the chaos/ confusion and the agony/heartache to a much higher place...a place of HOPE.
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