Andy

“I wrote this piece in hopes that it might benefit others, but I also sensed that the process might somehow be good for me. I didn’t gain any new insights into my past, but perhaps inner healing has taken place at a deeper level. One Sunday as we were leaving home for a church service, my son (age 15) responded to me defiantly. In the past, such behavior often prompted me to feel that I wasn’t worth respecting as a father. But this time I didn’t go down that path. I realized that his behavior was his issue, not mine. A few minutes later I found out that several men from my church were at an annual weekend get-away to which I had not been invited. I could easily have brooded over that, telling myself that I didn’t rate being included. Again, though, I chose not to go there. It was as if twice that morning I got bumped on a place that had once been bruised. I could feel that the spot was still a bit tender, but it didn’t really hurt. By the grace of God in those moments I made a conscious choice to reject old patterns of self-focused thinking, and I felt peace and joy!”

Author’s comment for 39 Stories, Day 26