Tuesday, April 28, 2015

A to Z - "X" is for Sssh

X is for secrets we keep, things we don't talk about. X is for Sssh.


We all have secrets, or things we don't talk about. It would be rude to speak some things aloud in public or to share another's private business with the world. I'm not referring to these kinds of things.

I'm referring to the kinds of secrets we keep locked inside that no one ever hears. These are the things our pride will never let us admit, the things in our past that are too painful to bear, or things society tells us we must not share or we won't fit in. Sometimes it is not a past secret but a new one; a disease, an illness, a change going on that is best kept close.

We all need a secret-keeper, too. Someone we can talk to, share these things with, who will never tell a soul. Some secrets are too big to keep all by yourself. One body cannot hold the enormity of a big secret. Secrets can make you explode. The energy required to hold in the reminders of the secret, whether in thoughts repeated, things you see in everyday life that remind you of the secret, or random times it would be so easy to blurt it out but you can't. Secrets consume you from the inside out of you don't siphon some of that energy off.

Exercise helps. Get mad, punch a punching bag, ride a bike, go for a jog, swim, anything to work off some pent up stress.

And find a secret-keeper, maybe even a pet, to talk to. Write the secrets down. Pray about them. Confess to a priest. Talk to a therapist. Visit a loved one's grave. Whatever you do, share some of it.


These burdens do not have to be yours alone to bear.


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