Survival Scars

As my son and grandson and I hiked in the Maine wilderness last summer, my son took many pictures. Some were of nature like the picture here of this double burl on this tree. A burl is most commonly caused by the tree covering and surviving an insect or other infestation. Nature has provided ways for biological survival by creating all kinds of scars and blemishes needed for healing. After my cancer surgery the vertical incision in my abdomen became infected and needed to be opened and healed slowly. My grandchildren always called me Bumpa, but after that scar I became double Bumpa because of the particular appearance of the scar. We also form many protective scars to hide the emotional and psychological wounds that life brings our way. Although these scars may serve a temporary purpose unlike some physical scars they can cause an ongoing and harmful protective reaction. Anything that keeps us from being open to giving and receiving love for example needs permanent healing not emotional scar tissue. Some people develop an ongoing completely negative world view that keeps them from enjoying life. Again this is usually a response to some temporary circumstance that takes on permanent effects. Or not trusting anyone or perfectionist tendencies or not trying for fear of failure or any number of other ways we hide our hurts. Sometimes I wish these emotional scars were as visible as those burls. Maybe then we wouldn't be able to miss them or pretend that they don't bother us. Maybe then we would really take seriously healing rather than scars. I saw the movie "Precious" today and real people experience real life like this young woman. Precious lived through horrific life conditions, but the story is one of brave survival and hope. Overcoming adversity is hard but indeed possible. If we truly engage in healing we would stop passing on the same garbage to the next generation, and we would find peace and joy for ourselves in the process.