A Map to the Psyche

Out of all the people we knew
from our experiences with Safari
Sue was the only person to walk
out of the dark cloud of disaster
after making very serious mistakes,
with my respect completely intact.

Other people had made mistakes
or even direct intentional efforts
to hurt us.

They had run away,
or tried to take advantage
of the situation through cruel means.

I put Sue through the ringer,
confronted her,
embarrassed her,
and held her accountable for her actions.

Many of the other people who had made
similar, or less severe mistakes
had cowered
but she stood up,
faced it,
and ultimately rose above it.

When we came home in early July
from the project we had spent close to a year
planning in Ibiza, Spain
we faced a hailstorm of hate.

We faced accusations
and name calling by countless individuals
who were painting us with the actions
of many of the same people
we had tried previously to help.

Sue came by our home that day,
with her mother, Donna,
who had also been a pillar of strength
for us on more occasions
than I could count.

She held each of us tightly.

"We know the truth,
we were there.
Remember that."

I felt sudden shame
at previously being so hard on her
in the past, but she disagreed.

I later pondered
what might have been different
if I had been that strong with
the people who had previously
taken advantage of us.

That was a weakness
I would need to overcome.

The fear of offending
the people I cared about,
instead of turning my focus to
preventing the pain that could
have been avoided in the first place.

It was becoming clearly evident that we knew
few people who were as strong as she was.

" I know it's hell right now "

She said with empathy

" I want you to know,
you've given me the best
experiences of my life,
and even though this is a horrible time....
It was worth it to be with you through this.

I wouldn't have changed a single
thing, not a single moment of any of it. "

Even though it did
hurt like hell at that moment,
She was right,
and I held her tightly in return,
as I realized

I wouldn't have changed a single moment either.

Confront the dark parts of yourself,
and work to banish them
with illumination and forgiveness.

Your willingness
to wrestle with your demons
will cause your angels to sing.

Use the pain as fuel,
as a reminder of your strength.

"We know the truth, we were there. Remember that."

" I know it's hell right now "

" I want you to know, you've given me the best experiences of my life, and even though this is a horrible time.... It was worth it to be with you through this. I wouldn't have changed a single thing, not a single moment of any of it. "

Confront the dark parts of yourself, and work to banish them with illumination and forgiveness. Your willingness to wrestle with your demons will cause your angels to sing. Use the pain as fuel, as a reminder of your strength.

Confront the dark parts of yourself, and work to banish them with illumination and forgiveness. Your willingness to wrestle with your demons will cause your angels to sing. Use the pain as fuel, as a reminder of your strength.

"We know the truth,
we were there.
Remember that."

" I want you to know,
you've given me the best
experiences of my life,
and even though this is a horrible time....
It was worth it to be with you through this.

I wouldn't have changed a single
thing, not a single moment of any of it. "

Confront the dark parts of yourself,
and work to banish them
with illumination and forgiveness.

Your willingness
to wrestle with your demons
will cause your angels to sing.

Use the pain as fuel,
as a reminder of your strength.

Confront the dark parts of yourself,
and work to banish them
with illumination and forgiveness.

Your willingness
to wrestle with your demons
will cause your angels to sing.

Use the pain as fuel,
as a reminder of your strength.