You are solely responsible for your own wellbeing. Your one job in this lifetime is to get your indomitable spirit through from beginning to end – having experienced all there is for you, healed all your wounds and learned all your lessons – Resilient Practice
What is the difference between a wound and a scar?
A scar is healed. It marks a place where I learned something important. It is proof that I can mend. And I can survive.
Scar tissue is different from the original material. It has been changed by experience. It is a place where we have sacrificed an old way of being and fashioned something new. A way to go on, protected still, but tougher than before. When the new skin has been worn in, our scars do not cause us pain. Remembering what created them does not take us back there. They carry a different feeling. A feeling of having triumphed through hardship. Of endings and beginnings.
A wound is a place of vulnerability. It is evidence that we have felt pain and loss, but it remains exposed and visible to predators. It is open to the elements. A wound can take in poison. Without the process of healing, further harm can come to it. Neglecting to tend to a wound can place us in danger of further attack. When a wound is poked we are transported back into trauma.
In April 2023 we wrote about understanding what it is to be ‘triggered.’ Responding to a trigger is often an unconscious choice where it becomes easier to blame trigger than to take responsibility. This leaves us powerless to do anything but become triggered. We shared a tool to make responding to a trigger a conscious choice. We suggested that readers approach the discovery of a trigger with curiosity and gratitude. Learning such vital information about the Self is a gift!
When we respond to a trigger, we are being given a direct message that there is work to do. We are being shown that there is a wound to heal. When this information is revealed to us it is possible to accept the invitation to do that work. There are countless ways to apply balm to a wound, many of which are shared on this website. These may involve therapy, meditation, mindfulness exercises, soul retrieval, talking things through with a friend, journaling or affirmation. There are too many to share all but below is a selection of articles to explore, most of which have practical tool to try – we suggest though that you explore the website to find the ones that resonate with you:
When we no longer respond to our triggers with that unpleasant squirt of body chemistry associated with negative emotion, we know that we have healed. The wound that we sustained has become a scar and now exists as a evidence of our struggle and subsequent mastery.
And speaking of your scars – know this:
The brightest full harvest moon that shone down on us this week was made most beautiful by all of her scars. They give her the face of compassion. Like her, whatever happens to you, you go on shining. Your indomitable spirit lives on, beyond and through.
As Dr Clarissa Pinkola Estes says ‘saplings are beautiful but untested.’
It is our scars that show us that we have lived and survived.
They make us who we are.
Try this:
Speak the following meditation into your phone and find a quit place to listen:
Sit quietly and take your awareness to your breathing
Allow your breath to slow and deepen
Settle into your deep resounding rhythms
The moon over the water
Draws the waves over the sand
And they roll back again
In perfect time
Just like the breath
Deep and slow
Drawing forward
Rolling back
Sit with the moon
And visualize her enchanting light
As you find that place of quiet stillness
Within you
And sit in your body
Your most beloved and valued companion
For all the days of your life
Sit in stillness
And silence
And listen
Listen to the sounds of your body
The air entering and leaving the lungs
Feel its subtle movements
As you breathe
In warmth and deep comfort
Now
Begin to notice any areas
Of vulnerability within your body
These may be physical discomfort
Or emotional unease
Your stomach
Your throat
Your head
Your heart
Move your awareness gently throughout
And find the places where balm is needed
Sit with those tender areas
Cloak yourself with compassion
It is time to heal
Set the intention to apply the medicine
To do the inner work
Good food
Sleep
Breath
Time
Truth
Meditation
Mindfulness
Affirmation of worth
Processing of trauma
Acceptance
Letting go
Whatever it is that you need
Set the intention to apply the balm
Now
Find your scars
Physical or otherwise
These are your triumphs
Your successes
Treasure them
They are beautiful!
They show you your resilience
They make you more than you were
Before you were tested
They are unique creations
Of your own crafting
They are tough
Shining in the moonlight
Touch them one by one
Both physical and emotional
And know the wisdom that lies there
And as you gaze at the moon in all her glory
With all her scars
Know that like her
You are whole
And perfect
Exactly as you are
Exactly where you are
A one-time only
Never to be repeated
Child of the Universe
As you drift slowly back to full awareness, begin to foster a deep appreciation of Self
And know that you are exactly where you need to be right now
For more insights and a host of tools and techniques for exploring the Self and improving your human experience see our book:
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