Think back to childhood & going to school. Do you not vividly remember breaking a bone (or someone in your class breaking theirs) & everyone would take out a marker & write an encouraging note?
At least for my generation, the casts were all white, & we’d sign in colorful markers. Then bc casts were so “popular” the cast makers would make them in diff colors you could choose from. The teachers then had to get creative: silver markers to write over the colors.
Being a basketball player, maybe it wasn’t always casts, but I got a lot of positive attention for wearing a splint bc I jammed/broke my finger…or even came in w crutches bc I turned a knee/ankle. But the point is – you didn’t fear the reaction. And in fact the cast or splint or crutches drew ppl in TOWARDS you. They wanted to hear the story of HOW it happened. As if you were the protagonist & by some brave act, you got injured.
At the core of any/all of it, was pain that needed healing.
And in the same breath, if you were in emotional pain, you hid it. No one wanted to be the kid over the loud speaker: “James Smith please come to the guidance counselor’s office.”
With emotional pain, you feared judgement, rejection, being perceived as weak. There was no physical sign of “bravery” like a cast, so you held it in.
I wanted to share that irony bc our next LIFE Saver family (we’re going beyond the month of May) is the Bronsteins, @bucketsoverbullying whose son, Nathan Isaac, died by suicide at only 15.
Nathan (link to the full write-up in Stories) was cyber-bullied by teammates & told to “k!ll h!mself.” Nate had the wherewithal to tell school administrators. But he didn’t share w his parents or fam. The Bronsteins didn’t find out he’d told the admins until AFTER he’d passed. The school’s still not taken responsibility for not sharing.
We live in a culture where a cast for physical injuries is a sign of bravery, but opening up abt emotional pain – is frowned down upon, something we fear judgement for, that many/most institutions like schools & offices sweep under rug.
The Bronstein’s & these LIFE fams are speaking up to CHANGE that culture. We can do this.