Travel Light
I was busy tying up loose ends today and packing for another trip to share my story. As I packed, I listened to an old interview, recorded when I was struggling with severe migraines.
The interviewer wanted me to tell how I made it in my teens. I was trafficked for four years. During that time, I was raped, including gang rape, kidnapped, beaten, left on the side of the road in all kinds of weather, often without appropriate clothing.
It is a miracle that I survived. I attempted suicide a few times. I drank all the time and did any drugs that I could get my hands on. I hitchhiked from Boston to Lawrence to Haverhill to anywhere sometimes. I slept in doorways, in parks, on church steps and in cars.
Unless I am telling my story, people have no idea what kind of past I had. I met a young man last week who said, “You remind me of my mom; a nice church lady with five kids.” I thought that was nice.
How is it that I have been through all that and yet, it doesn’t show?
I travel light.
This weekend, I will speak at a fundraiser for a crisis pregnancy center and then, a youth convention. I packed one carry-on bag. It is the smallest wheeled bag I could find. I literally travel light.
Spiritually, mentally and emotionally, I travel light too. I get upset, but it is short lived. If I cannot do anything about it, I shrug. I get in fear, but if there isn’t any specific precautions I can take, I shrug. I get really frustrated, but if I cannot find anyone to help me, I find something else to do. I get hurt, but I forgive.
It wasn’t always that way. It took years of practice. I thought about what I wanted my life to be like. I wanted to live without strife and anger. There are plenty of Scripture passages that we can turn to and keep in our thoughts and speak aloud that help with the kinds of torment that we’ve been through as survivors of abuse.
Eph. 4:32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
Eph. 4:29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.
These two verses are some of the most instrumental in my growth and transformation. I memorized them by speaking them many times per day. The Bible is full of good words for us to meditate on. Changing our thinking is key to living well.
How do you expand your peace and joy?