No, nobody can make it out here alone

Alone

Lying, thinking

Last night

How to find my soul a home

Where water is not thirsty

And bread loaf is not stone

I came up with one thing

And I don't believe I'm wrong

That nobody.

But nobody

Can make it out here alone.

Alone, all alone

Nobody, but nobody

Can make it out here alone.

There are some millionaires

With money they can't use

Their wives run around like banshees

Their children sing the blues

They've got expensive doctors

To cure their hearts of stone.

But nobody

No, nobody

Can make it out here alone.

Alone, all alone

Nobody, but nobody

Can make it out here alone.

Now if you listen closely

I'll tell you what I know

Storm clouds are gathering

The wind is gonna blow

The race of man is suffering

And I can hear the moan,

'Cause nobody,

But nobody

Can make it out here alone.

Alone, all alone

Nobody, but nobody

Can make it out here alone.

- Maya Angelou

Wow! I had the opportunity to go to a dedication for a new intergenerational community for families with children who are adopted from Oregon's foster care system. bridgemeadows.org

One of the ladies read from this poem, and it completely resonated with my heart. Why do we buy into this belief that we need to tough it out alone? Is it that good old pioneer "Go West young man" spirit? It is so contrary to everything about us as humans. Everything from the way that our brains develop to our very spirit relies on the connections that we have with those around us. And yet.. I find myself pullling away from those I love when times get tough. You know, those times when I need support the most? When my daughter has difficulty, I find myself putting on the face of a completely put together family. Why is there such shame in trial? I am told that we all go through struggles. I am told that no one has it all together. But if I am honest, it really doesn't seem that way. I see pictures that seem so perfect, I see smiles that seem so complete. Then I look at my own pictures and see the same perfection displayed, the same smiles. It is a hard journey, especially when you see deep wounds in the ones that you love. But Nobody, but nobody can make it out here alone. I am so very thankful for those in my life who consistently love me and my family through thick and thin. Especially those moms who authentically share their struggles and allow me to share mine.

This is how we were intended to live, but it feels so very foreign. I pray that a day will come when intimacy is normal and "the face" is foreign.