You are strong, and you are not alone

The lessons from a militarized childhood and the entries about child abuse have prompted more than a few messages from readers who were themselves abused, or who served in the military, or who got PTSD in other, usually awful, ways. I've answered all those messages, of course, but for them and for those in similar conditions who haven't written, I wanted to say two simple things.

You are strong.

You really are. You may not believe it, but you are. The proof is that you are alive, working, going about your days, holding it together most of the time--and all while precious few people in your life know or even want to hear the traumas you've suffered.

You are not alone.

We're out there, lots of us, vastly more than you would ever realize, and we're dealing with similar issues. No two of us are exactly the same, of course, nor are any two groups. My cop friend fights different shit than my vet friend; my physically abused past is not the same as that of my sexually abused friend; and on and on. Yet we all share a basic understanding of and damage from a darkness we hope most people never experience. We all share variants of the same sad lessons I've been recounting.

I think I've posted both these videos before, but I don't care; they suit the mood, so enjoy...

...a little John Lennon, tackling a classic...



...and a song that's romantic in intent but still feels right.