English: MLK Memorial, Washington, DC: Passing through the "Mountain of Despair" to the "Stone of Hope" (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
From Ed Ostom;
For those whose hearts are filled
with despair two of the most powerful words in the English language
are “Hold on!” Having worked for many years in the
Addictions Field I have listened to many heart wrenching stories of
hopeless despair.
I have heard the pain in the words of
those caught in the eddying spiral of rejection. I have listened to
the heart cries of those who find themselves in the pitch darkness of
a tunnel of despair and hopelessness. I have listened to countless
stories of pain, guilt and shame. The heart cry of these countless
faces is one of fear, defeat and sorrow.
Each one has their own story to tell.
So many faces! So many stories! So much pain. Hopelessness runs
rampant. The icy cold shackles of depression and despair entwine the
hearts of so many leaving them as hopeless and hapless blobs of
humanity with little energy to live and go on facing life.
Hopelessness grips their hearts. They find themselves in
a long winding tunnel going nowhere quickly.
There is no light penetrating their
dark tunnel. All is hopeless. Despair eats away at their
confidence. Self has ascended and demands its own way. Life is
joyless. Often the one feeling this pain feels useless also. As
time goes on and one finds himself or herself drawn aside from their
roots
It is in this vulnerable state that
many are tempted to fit in with. Because of the pain of rejection
many give up and become missionaries of despair and
depression. It is these folk that are targets for suicide and self
destruction.
The idea of suicide becomes
attractive for many. They have no light at the end of their tunnel.
Life seems to empty and forlorn. They give consideration to “ending
it all”. Then there would be no more pain. No more hopeless
despair. No more emptiness. No more cares or troubles?
It is at these times that one can
intervene and help others. That is what we are attempting to do.
When one wants to help he can say
“Hang on! This is a message of hope. It is
saying there is a future. You have something to look forward to!
Two little words but delivering a
much needed message of hope, which becomes a powerful motivator
enabling people to get away from the negativity and see
past the storm and begin to grasp a hold of life with gusto and
a willingness to “keep on keeping on in spite of the
daily problems confronting them.
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