Wounds that heal

superficially

need deeper healing.

Sometime the wound

needs to be

reopened

to heal

completely.

A friend, a nurse,

helped a patient

with a compound-fracture wound

that had become

infected

after the scar

had formed.

She described

how she cleaned

the reopened wound daily.

Gradually,

the festering cleared up

and the new healthy layers

grew and sealed the wound.

My friend’s ministries

are a good metaphor

for treating

physiological pain

and emotional wounds.

These wounds

develop a scab,

then a scar,

but may not heal deeply.

Sometimes later,

sometimes more than once,

these wounds

need

to be reopened.

This reopening

is very painful,

but creates an

environment

for deeper healing.

At transition times

in our lives,

body and spirit

call out

for a more intense exposure

to our pain.

Once the pain

has been faced,

often a disorienting process,

we can grow

and thrive again.

 

Living Lines Reflections