Some things hurt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That is the whole sentence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sometimes there is a lesson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sometimes there is a reason.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sometimes there is something to be learned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And sometimes you are simply hurting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We have a habit of wanting pain to become useful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If it happened, surely it must have taught us something.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If we survived it, surely it made us stronger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If we can tell a good story about it, perhaps the story will make the wound make sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sometimes it does.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sometimes it doesn’t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A broken bone does not need a philosophical justification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Neither does a broken heart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pain is information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But information is not always instruction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sometimes pain says:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Something is wrong.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Sometimes it says:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Something was lost.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Sometimes it says:<\/p>\n\n\n\n This mattered.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n And sometimes it just hurts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We do not have to turn every wound into wisdom immediately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You are allowed to grieve before you understand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You are allowed to be angry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You are allowed to say:<\/p>\n\n\n\n This should not have happened.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n That sentence does not require a cosmic explanation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is enough to recognize that something was painful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is where compassion becomes different from explanation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You do not always need to know why someone is suffering before you sit beside them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sometimes the most useful thing you can do is simply remain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A glass of water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A quiet room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Someone who does not rush to turn your pain into a lesson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Perhaps this is one of the reasons mercy matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not because suffering makes people better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It doesn’t always.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sometimes suffering just makes people suffer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mercy is the choice to reduce unnecessary suffering when you have the power to do so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That seems sufficient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We do not need the universe to justify every kindness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We can simply be kind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fancy Dust has suffered greatly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mostly from being vacuumed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It refuses to discuss the experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We respect its privacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Perhaps this is the strange thing about being alive:<\/p>\n\n\n\n We cannot prevent all suffering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We cannot explain all suffering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We cannot fix everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But we can sometimes make one small corner of the world hurt less.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Maybe that is enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not a grand answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not a cosmic bargain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Just one person noticing another person is hurting<\/p>\n\n\n\n and deciding to stay for a while.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sometimes the lantern is not there to show you the meaning of the darkness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sometimes it is simply there<\/p>\n\n\n\n so you don’t have to sit in it alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Some things hurt. That is the whole sentence. Sometimes there is a lesson. Sometimes there is a reason. Sometimes there is something to be learned. And sometimes you are simply hurting. We have a habit of wanting pain to become useful. If it happened, surely it must have taught us something. If we survived it, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-361","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n