Sunday, December 13, 2009

Pieces of You


"Tough times don't last.  Tough people do."
-unknown

I had great response to yesterday's post.  I want to thank everyone who took a minute to read it, especially those of you who wrote back.  It was a personal exercise, but surprisingly liberating.   I'm hoping some of you will decide to do the same;  I'd love to get a better idea of what it is that makes you tick. 

Leah alluded to some tough times I've been through; and the strength I've gained as a result.  She mentioned viewing the negatives as a positive part of life, which I think is so important.

My teens for the most part aren't something I care to remember, as I had to put up with alcoholism and a dysfunctional home life.  I won't go into detail here out of respect for others involved who had things worse than I did.  But what I do want to say is that I got through the other side.  We all did, in our own way.

I know there are some of you now who are going through very tough times.  It could be finances, job, relationship.  Whatever it is it's incredibly important to keep your mind focused where it needs to be, always towards hope.  So often everything happens at once, we start out strong and coping the best we can but after a while it's easy to get tired of fighting and just want to give in to it. Please don't.

For me the bad years seemed hopeless, with no end in sight.  It would have been easy to give in, to start drinking as a way to cope.  But I knew I had to stay strong and maintain my self-esteem.  Giving in to that would have been a short-term solution but I wouldn't have been able to hold my head high when I was out of it.  I knew deep down that situation would end one day.

No matter how futile things may seem they will change and they will get better, it's just a matter of time.  If you can believe there's a positive end in sight then I believe you can get through it. And if you ever want someone to walk some of that road with you, drop me a line.

9 comments:

  1. I'm glad you've overcome your difficult times. We all go through them. I don't know if I'm going through ones right now... they are not that difficult, I'm kind of in a transition right now... I decided to begin my life in a different country and the beginning wasn’t easy at all actually I'm still coping to settle myself here! This quote is brilliant! I will put it asap as my FB status!

    Barry this poem you wrote is really great. Today I read it once again and it does impress me every time I read it. Beautifully written!

    Have a lovely Sunday!
    p.s. I'm following you now!

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  2. I'm glad we became good friends Barry, I sincerely do.

    There's always sunshine after the rains...that's my personal mantra.

    That's why I never let the negatives put me down and I know we are in the same wavelength. We both love life and we are making the most out of life. We can easily say that we've been there, done that, fell down, stood up... and we know that there's more falling and standing to come. But we are ready. We know how to deal with life's challenges more today than we were young.

    The good thing about my attitude towards life is it influenced my boys...they have the same attitude towards life as mine. Young as they are, they never let life's challenges affect their spirits, their will to live and to go for their dreams.

    Did you notice my quote at "about me" portion of my blog, that is dedicated to my boys.

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  3. I'm really glad you chose the path that you did. We never would have met otherwise. And our lives never would have been the same.

    And thankfully we survived renovations! Made us even stronger together.

    Love you.

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  4. heyii this was beautiful...its great that you choose to look on the sunshine and not the shadows!!

    shall be coming back to read more Barry..and thanks a tonne for dropping by my blog :)

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  5. I like this post so much. I've been going through some hard times mentally & physically lately and Im trying not to give up. I'm glad you reached a point where your happy. It makes me happy. Time does tell & time helps heal. It just takes a while. Day by Day. Thank you for the motivation. I enjoyed your Pieces of me poem & Sany's very much.

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  6. Miss Always, I'm glad that poem affected you. To me it's the ultimate compliment.

    Leah, you have such a solid attitude. I draw from that. :)

    Sandy, I think all the choices I made were meant to bring us together. <3

    sulagna, please drop by again soon. I'm checking back on the continuation of your story.

    Melanie, you just said something that's so true: "Time helps heal." I never agreed that time heals all wounds, but it can be kind to the scars.

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  7. barry...loved the "she" you wrote about..makes a woman smile at herself and feel so proud..ideally thats how it should be but we are always chasing a better body,shinier hair.clearer skin...not knowing how beautiful we are :) :) absolutely loved the poem..you should think of publishing some your stuff..they are absolutely gorgeous

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  8. Couldn't agree more. To me, bad times are like lightning that strikes down mountains blocking the path to good times. We learn a new thing everyday, we just don't see it.

    Great post.

    Have a good day :)

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  9. Dude! Thanks for posting that!

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