Liz Miller Training

In her book, Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith, Kathleen Norris quotes a 4th century monk on the task of reading scripture as "working the earth of the heart," for it is only in a disturbed, ploughed-up ground that the seeds we plant can grow. If your heart is troubled today, plant the seeds that will grow into what you need to bring it peace.

This picture has been making the rounds. I like it because every single person you meet is fighting some battle that they do not advertise. I have seen several comments (including mine!) that we also hope folks will tell others about their battle so that they do not have to fight alone.

But, what makes us safe to share dark battle with? This varies person to person, but in general:

Are we able to deeply listen, without judgment, and both empathize with that person and validate how they might be feeling?

Do we know the difference between empathizing and validating?

Have we bought into the idea that we can validate without agreement, and without encouraging what we think is a "wrong" experience?

Do we have a few key questions up our sleeves that we can deploy to draw another person out and learn about their experience so they do not feel so alone?

These might be important questions for any of us to ponder.