The Postsecret and the Swamp
Reading the weekly Postsecret offerings is a bit of a ritual in my world. As I think about each one – sometimes in passing, sometimes at length – I often see reflections of myself.
I found one particularly touching:
As I read it, I felt really sad.
For a period of my life, I lived in a swamp, and can identify with the overwhelming feeling that it was my destiny, that the hard drudgery is what life is… That to escape from such a place would require a miracle not offered to those in the swampy depths.
I imagine many people have felt the same way.
If you’re in that place – where the path out of the swamp feels too hard – don’t give up. Don’t give up. Please don’t give up.
Life is not all roses and sunshine like we often expect it to be. Life is hard work, it can be rough as guts, and it can hurt. But there’s a very important thing you need to know: The swamp – the place you were born into or now find yourself – is not a reflection on how precious and important you are.
Because you are so very precious, and do not deserve to live your life hidden away in a dark place.
So what can you do about it?
It’s time to start walking out of the swamp. Today. Right now. Change a mindset, change a habit. Stop talking down to yourself. Reach out to someone who can help you. Face the facts that your finances or your body don’t look the way you want. Accept the fact you need to leave your partner. Whatever your swamp is, now is the time to look towards something new.
And it’s going to hurt, because hope hurts the heart that’s not used to it.
But:
Even though the pain of taking the path out may be greater than the pain of living where you are right now, the end payoff is worth it.
Think of it this way: You get a nasty infection in your elbow, which causes it to seize up. You’re not having any joy moving the joint, and you can’t carry much weight on it, but it’s functional. It doesn’t really matter that you can’t do everything, does it?
But then a doctor takes a look at your elbow and suggests that cleaning out the infection will fully heal you. You agree to the treatment, and the doctor starts work.
It hurts. It fucking hurts.
You have a choice. You can persevere, or you can give up. You can fight through, or you can succumb.
Hand on heart, from someone who has walked the path out of the swamp – out of multiple swamps – it’s worth the fight. Don’t ever let the pain of healing rob you of your future.
Because oh, what a future you can have.
This was a Postsecret that reminded me of how far I’ve come, and hopefully, it’ll inspire those who read this and need to hear it – you are precious, and it will get better.
It starts with a choice.
Be brave.
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