My son recently read a book called I Survived. I asked about it, but didn’t really listen too much because of course the title gives away the ending. Of course they survived. How hard could it have been?
Such is the view from the other side of tragedy and challenge. Once through it, we know it is survivable so it’s easy to shrug off what others are going through.
We easily forget that we didn’t know that before we entered. The situation we were facing seemed impossible, too difficult, too overwhelming, too much to handle.
Remembering that feeling helps us in two ways.
First, it gives us grace for those around us who are currently up against a challenge that they don’t know if they have the strength or ability to get through. Even if we know for sure that they do, this uncertainty can be debilitating, so our encouraging words and belief in them becomes important.
Second, it is a reminder that we are courageous because we are still here. We have come up against challenges, they were hard and we found a way through.
As Malcolm Gladwell wrote in David and Goliath, “Courage is what you earn when you’ve been through the tough times and you discover they aren’t so tough after all.”
Celebrate your courage. You have earned it.
I’m just going to ask my son about the book again, and perhaps listen this time.
