We are pleased to announce that as of March 4, 2025, an updated Rich Text Editor has been introduced in the MyFitnessPal Community. To learn more about the changes, please click here. We look forward to sharing this new feature with you!
The box
3rdwoozie5
Posts: 46 Member
"The Uses of Sorrow"
Someone I loved once gave me
... a box full of darkness.
It took me years to understand
that this, too, was a gift.--Mary Oliver
"Years ago when we were stationed at Ft. Huachuca, AZ, we had a soldier die in the unit. After the service, several military spouses were standing around with pens and pieces of paper coordinating food and other things for the family. I made the comment to a fellow spouse that I wish I could take the grief away from the family for just a little bit.
A very wise fellow senior military spouse softly said 'Ingrid, it is their box. It is full of the deepest, darkest kinds of sadness. We can not take the box from the family. It belongs to them. We can be there when they throw the box to the ground, scream and shout at the box, but it belongs to them. At times they will open it a bit and then shut it right up. Other times they will open it wide and the wail of sorrow will be heard.'
We were all very quiet as we absorbed these words of wisdom. She continued, 'Then one day the box will be around, maybe not quite so close, but she will smile as the first thought is that she got to share her life with him...and then the box becomes a gift.'
Someone I loved once gave me
... a box full of darkness.
It took me years to understand
that this, too, was a gift.--Mary Oliver
"Years ago when we were stationed at Ft. Huachuca, AZ, we had a soldier die in the unit. After the service, several military spouses were standing around with pens and pieces of paper coordinating food and other things for the family. I made the comment to a fellow spouse that I wish I could take the grief away from the family for just a little bit.
A very wise fellow senior military spouse softly said 'Ingrid, it is their box. It is full of the deepest, darkest kinds of sadness. We can not take the box from the family. It belongs to them. We can be there when they throw the box to the ground, scream and shout at the box, but it belongs to them. At times they will open it a bit and then shut it right up. Other times they will open it wide and the wail of sorrow will be heard.'
We were all very quiet as we absorbed these words of wisdom. She continued, 'Then one day the box will be around, maybe not quite so close, but she will smile as the first thought is that she got to share her life with him...and then the box becomes a gift.'
0
This discussion has been closed.