Gentle Strength

Nothing is so strong as gentleness, nothing so gentle as real strength.
St. Francis de Sales

My childhood did not have very many gentle people.  I do remember a teacher I had called Mrs. Loving (yup that really was her name) and she landed in our class half way through the year after the teacher was fired.  Very rare to fire a teacher.  Needless to say the class was totally out of control and she kept me in after school to write sentences for talking in class.  I remember mentioning something rude to my friend about her not being very "loving."  However, by the end of the school year I adored her.  She is the first person in my memory that showed gentle strength.  I don't remember details just the feeling of being safe with her.  I knew it was possible.  My world just wasn't safe.  I learned fear.  Lots and lots of fear.  Until I could see anything as scary and terrifying like some of the children books that then show the monster was a coat on a chair or some other non-frightening thing.  But in my world, real monsters lurked and attacked.  My world was so bizarre that I didn't believe it myself.  I stopped talking about my life.  Eventually, by high school, I couldn't remember my childhood.  Years passed.  I met gentle strength in my counselor.  I pushed boundaries when I was first seeing him and he would let me know firmly yet gently that when he said no he meant it.  I learned to trust his gentleness and his strength.  I also learned that I could be safe.  Plus he taught me how I could create for myself a safe place.  I try more and more each day to treat others with gentleness.  I am learning that I do not have to be a doormat to do this.  Gentleness and strength are a powerful combination for good.  I am hoping someday that someone will think of me as a Mrs. Loving.  Please Lord, bless Mrs. Loving where ever she is for showing a mixed up little girl that gentleness is real.

Spreading out my 10,000 piece puzzle.