Tread lightly. Broken heart inside. {Haverlee}

A few months ago, I sat on my couch next to my friend Haverlee. She is an adorable momma to three boys. Her smile lights up a room and she has been such an encouragement to me for quite a while now. We talked about silly things, serious things, and stuff in between. During the course of our conversation, she shared with me her story. Her story isn’t all rainbows and sunshine. She is walking through the very difficult and painful days of marriage separation. Sunday marked her 12 year wedding anniversary. She shared a bit about the emotions of an anniversary when there isn’t celebrating on her blog. As I read her words, I thought of so many of you that have shared snippets of your stories with me….stories that don’t tie up with a pretty bow. I asked Haverlee if I could link to her post today. I know so many of you are facing very hard roads today, difficult battles that feel uphill. My hope is that you might find some encouragement in Haverlee’s words and the reminder that you are not alone.

Here is an excerpt from her post, click here to read more:

“I’ve found that people can fairly easily talk about those rough patches once they’re back on smooth ground. But I don’t hear people talking about it when they’re stuck in the middle; at least not outside their trusted circle of family and friends. But you know what’s even harder than walking through the toughest time in my life? Pretending I’m not. I can’t and I won’t. I will not put on a mask of perfection when my heart is aching on the best days and feels like it’s being ripped in two on the worst days. I sometimes want to hang a sign around my neck that says, “Tread lightly. Broken heart inside.” “

For those of you that feel the same…wishing others would tread lightly and recognize you have a broken heart inside….I hope you can take a few minutes to visit Haverlee’s blog. Though my words are feeble, know that I think of you often as I write this random blog. Life is not always sunshine and rainbows, but even in the dark times there are moments of joy to be found. My prayer today is that those of you feeling overcome by the dark and the painful, might find moments of grace and be surprised by joy today.