Have you heard the saying “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger?”
I’ve been throwing that line around as a joke for quite some time. If it holds true, I should have the mental fortitude of a truck by now, right?
But this morning, I stumbled upon that same line in a social media post, and it got me thinking. Sometimes what doesn’t kill you can leave you hurt and traumatized. You’re not dead, but you’re in pain and suffering.
So here’s my new thought about it.
It’s like a shattered vase. You slowly put it back together with glue one piece at a time. Once fixed, it’s not the same anymore, it’s stronger. The force that broke the vase didn’t make it stronger, repairing it did.
So, when we say “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” perhaps it’s not quite accurate. It’s not the hardship itself, but the healing that follows that truly strengthens us.
It’s the act of forgiveness, the patching of our wounds, that grants us strength.
Until next time,
Katharine
