Even my close friend,
someone I trusted,
one who shared my bread,
has turned against me

Psalm 41:9

 

I’ve been thinking of the elderly lady I met in the hospital recently. She was only a few years shy of a hundred but proud of her independence. Yet, as we talked, she shed a few tears, not quite able to fight them back completely. She told me about someone who had been close but was no longer there for her.

How sad such a loss! What a hole it leaves in the heart!

Many of us have such holes in our lives – holes that had once been filled with the love of special people – friends who had meant everything to us. Relationships broken.

As we get older and reflect on our past, the way older people do, these hurts are remembered. They’re never really gone.

I guess I’m one of those older folks, feeling sad about lost relationships in life. But, as I’ve learned from my struggles with depression, the sadness we hold within does not have to be there forever.

By connecting with God and summoning the strength he can give, it becomes possible to reach out to others. Relief can happen. We can transform the pain we feel into concern about the needs of others – possibly people just like us. Consider joining with those who are lonely like you. Fill them with the good you have inside – the good that’s now no longer hidden by the dark.

Because you understand how they feel you’ll have the compassion so important for people with pain. Turn bad feelings into good, for both you and others. Encourage the sharing of memories from the past. Happy ones; sad ones. Everyone has them. Healing will begin.

We who carry the love of God within have an abundance to share with those who need it. As we share, amazing things can happen. The hole in our own heart will diminish as we help others mend theirs.

(I think I may volunteer to visit seniors.)

marja