BE GENTLE WITH YOURSELF TODAY

You are learning to hold the tension of a lot of different things. You are learning to accept the way some flowers take many seasons to bloom. You are learning to accept that some conversations will be difficult to have, and some will be easier. Some emotions will be easier to express than others. Sometimes, forgiveness takes weeks; other times, it takes much longer.
And through it all, your heart is still beating. There is still room for healing, even in the places where everyone else seems to have moved on from what happened.

Be gentle with yourself. Be gentle when you are trying to be grateful for where you are, while you are still missing what was. Be gentle when you are putting a smile on your face, and on the inside, you do not know how you actually feel. Lean into the grace that reminds you: there is no shame if it takes time to work through this. There is still time to heal.
Even when it comes to those who seem to have a much better grip at working through things than you, remember, at any given moment, we're all working through something. We're all faced with some unknown, whether we realize it or not.

So, if it all feels like too much... it's because it is too much. It is too much for any one person to try and work through on their own. You're not traveling through this alone.

So when you're feeling the weight of the world, know that in 7 billion different ways, we're all feeling it. And all by grace, day by day, there is room for us to work through this. It's not going to be easy. Making sure everyone's needs are met is lifelong work that takes all of us, but maybe, it's possible. Maybe there's hope. Not wishful thinking, but hope.

May hope rise among us for every tired, weary, broken heart. Let hope strengthen us into action so that we may grow in our collective awareness of each other, letting every interaction be a reminder: none of us are in this alone.

Breathe deep. Stay connected. Together, we will hold the tension of things. Some flowers will take longer to bloom, and this is also true: there is still hope for our uncertainty.

More in this week's series called "Rooted, Grounded, Breathing", only with a subscription in the Storyteller App.

Sincerely,
Morgan Harper Nichols