The Power of 4
I met 4 beautiful young women last week, who meet at least once a week to share, converse, listen and open up to each other in a group setting. A "support group" if you will, led by a licensed therapist, my friend/life coach, Melissa Kay.
Meeting all of them inspired me. Seeing them show up in a "support group" to have a conversation with their peers shows courage, hope and bravery. They didn't say much in front of me (at least while I was there as I did most of the sharing), but their silence and gestures spoke volumes. They listened, simply because they were willing. Sometimes, the willingness to go, show up and participate is all that matters.
Support groups can be very powerful if you give it a chance. It’s simply not a group of "troubled people" venting out, as some may assume. It's an opportunity to be in a safe space where you can hear other people's stories and realize that you are not the only one going through challenges. Sometimes, it’s comforting enough to feel you are not alone...And sometimes, a bond or a friendship may even develop within that group. As I always say, we all have stories and sharing our stories to others can simply be healing and empowering to others and to ourselves.
If you or you know someone struggling with something, I hope you find support groups in your area as they are surely available everywhere. Be it a support group for a battle with depression, mental illness, or anything else--groups are simply there for help and encouragement. It doesn’t matter if it’s a group of 3 or 20 people. What matters is you try, go and show up if you know you can use the inspiration and all the positive sentiments that go along with it. Certainly, these 4 young ladies I met were a Power of 4-truly courageous and inspiring, just for showing up.
As I was driving back home, I realized the feelings I felt after meeting them was enough to validate my new venture. It felt good giving but it felt even better seeing them appreciate the bracelets I gave them as small tokens of inspiration. I told them that I brought bracelets with different messages and I mixed them all up before giving them to them. And I honestly believed that whatever they got was the message intended for them. Hearing the first person to see the bracelet say “This is exactly what I need…” (it says “NO FEAR”) – was enough for me to continue to do what I’m doing. I know in my heart, this has become my purpose.