Connecting in 2009

2009 seems to be a year of new connections . . . or renewed connections.

In the day to day routine called my life, there is far too much talk of hurt and harm. One cannot work with victims of violence and avoid the emotions that come from knowing too much and seeing too clearly into another person's life. Domestic violence, child abuse, human trafficking, sexual abuse . . . some days I would almost run away, as far away as I can get and as fast as I can run.

What keeps me engaged in the struggle is what I see in the faces of those who have been hurt and who are still hurting. How could anyone give up when so many people are devastated by violence and abuse?

There is the child's voice that keeps ringing in my head when he says, "You can't protect me. Nobody can protect me."

And then worst of all is realizing that he is right, that we did not protect him, and that we cannot seem to find any way to protect him.

So what does this all have to do with connecting?

I am not completely certain of the answer, but I do know that connecting is comforting. Finding those old friends I had inadvertently set aside seems like the thing to do. Watching for them, listening for them, looking for them seems important.

Perhaps it is the fact that violence - all kinds of violence - destroys connections. Perhaps I am discovering a way to respond to the destroyed connections caused by violence that I see in my work.

And just maybe connecting with someone I almost lost reminds me that kindness, fondness and esteem for another person is stronger than violence.

Just a few late night ramblings,

Kathy Findley at Safe Places SafeBlog