Thankfulness
It’s the Thanksgiving holiday here in the US. My day was pretty full, volunteering and serving food early in the day, and then having dinner with my family later. It was a long day, all that time being social and around people has me pretty tired, but I wanted to post a quick thought about being thankful.
Sometimes for survivors, finding something to be thankful for at this time of year is a struggle. Many times we’re simply trying to survive family time without too much stress, or struggling with depression more than usual. I know, I’ve spent many years viewing Thanksgiving messages of gratefulness with my own particular brand of cynicism.
That’s not so much the case now, but it was for a very long time. It takes time, and there’s nothing that can change that. On the other hand, if you can’t find anything else to be thankful for today, be thankful that you are alive, and that you have time, and the hope, that in the years to come, you will continue healing, continue growing, and build a life that includes plenty to be thankful for.
I am thankful that each of you reading this has the chance to live, and become the person you want to be, healthy, and happy. Continue to work, and have hope.
Thank you for your comment, Tom. I can identify with you, as can many of our readers. Enjoyment of the holidays is often bitter-sweet for survivors of abuse. I find it helpful to focus on the “reason for the season” and review recovery skills such as boundary setting, intentional thinking to counteract the old self-defeating thought patterns I developed during the years of abuse, and as you said, being thankful for the blessings that I have today.
God bless you as you continue to grow, heal, and share your heart with others.
Hope is a stranger, most of the time. It is a term with a variety of meanings. On one hand, hope can be the guiding light that one utilizes to strive for something better. In my case, to pacify the demons that haunt me daily. On the other hand, hope seems to be always out of my grasp. Barely escaping my finger tips, hope seems elusive and something that I will never be able to fully commit too. Like you’ve said, being thankful for the blessings of today is reason enough to celebrate this Thanksgiving. I one day hope that I will be able to fully appreciate what my life has to offer rather than thinking about those parts of my life that have been stripped from me by my abusers. Thank you.
http://www.eloquentbooks.com/ChildAbuseandItsLifetimeofDemons.html
I am definitely thankful for continued healing and growth. Thanks for the reminder, Mike. And thanks for letting us include this for the holiday edition of THE BLOG CARNIVAL AGAINST CHILD ABUSE. I continue to be quite thankful for your contributions to the carnival.
if you can’t find anything else to be thankful for today, be thankful that you are alive, and have hope https://t.co/XErrbKCFYG
RT @SurvivorNetwork: if you can’t find anything else to be thankful for today, be thankful that you are alive, and have hope https://t.co/X…
RT @SurvivorNetwork: if you can’t find anything else to be thankful for today, be thankful that you are alive, and have hope https://t.co/X…
RT @SurvivorNetwork: if you can’t find anything else to be thankful for today, be thankful that you are alive, and have hope https://t.co/X…
RT @SurvivorNetwork: if you can’t find anything else to be thankful for today, be thankful that you are alive, and have hope https://t.co/X…