Being There

This week as I've been processing some thoughts and feelings, I found myself at the grocery store picking up some things for work when I ran into a woman from church. I know it was obvious to her that I had recently been crying (sorry, sometimes that's just how it is). She asked how I was and told her that, despite how I looked, I was fine. I quickly changed the subject and asked how she was doing. She said that she was having a rough time also. She didn't go into any detail, I mean, neither of us did, but it was a wake up call to me. If she had wanted to open up and talk, at that moment I couldn't have done anything to help, not even effectively listen. It was in that moment that I decided that no matter what I was feeling, I needed to get beyond myself. I realized that as long as I was harboring the pain I was feeling, the longer I would go without being able to truly be there for people, and that's what I need to do.
That doesn't mean that the pain disappears, or that somehow it doesn't matter (it also doesn't mean to hide it away- those feelings still have to be dealt with). Everything we go through is for our benefit and learning, good or bad. I've learned that I still have a lot of learning left to do in my life. I am so far from perfect, but luckily our Heavenly Father loves imperfect things. He can, but most importantly WILL, take the broken pieces of our lives and make a new and wonderful creation, if we allow Him to do so.