Health is more than just the food we eat, but the food we feed our souls. Each week I have been providing ideas on healthy nutrition, but this week is a little more inspiration about healthy relationships and how to feed our souls.
As I sit here writing this week’s blog I started to reflect on the things that have happened in my life in the past year. It will be one year this weekend, when tragedy hit our family. Last year on Feb 3rd we received a phone call no parent ever wants to hear. My 8 year old son Danny’s teacher was killed trying to save his friends life.
Some may have heard the story, but Mr. Wild was the best teacher ANY of my kids ever had and he had a great influence on my son. He had this way about him where he really wanted to make a difference in each and every kid’s lives. He died at too young of an age (24) and he was not able to reach all of the children he had dreamed he would. His death really impacted me in a way I didn’t know was possible. I knew God had a bigger plan for this tragedy and the story of his life made me want to be a better person.
Shortly after the event, I attended a church retreat entitled Christ Renews His Parish and feeding my soul became a priority. My dreams of focusing on health and nutrition started to unfold.
Just last weekend I gave a talk at church promoting the retreat. I enjoy public speaking and wasn’t concerned about getting up in front of hundreds of people to share my story, but when I got to the altar and started talking about my son’s teacher, I could feel my voice tremble and started to cry as I began to talk about my son’s teacher. I almost couldn’t get through the words. After the talk was over, I went to my car and cried. It was like this feeling came over me and I had to let myself feel the pain. I wanted to go home and hug my son, but he wasn’t there. So when I got home I told my teenage son Chris, I just needed to hug him and cried in his arms. Of course, he looked at me like I was crazy at first wondering what was wrong. I told him just hug me and I would explain after. He could sense it was important and was there for me to let me feel his love and help to soothe the pain.
Sometimes we don’t realize how something that happens to us impacts our over-all health and well- being. In this particular case it was a severe tragedy from 1 year ago and I needed to express my emotions and feel what I was feeling. Everyone deals with emotions in a different way, but a simple hug and loving energy from my son was what I needed to make it feel better. This experience made me realize, just how much of a difference an extra hug might actually mean to my kids. I don’t know everything that happens in the course of their day, but if I felt this strong connection and sense of peace, I can only imagine how it feels on their end, especially when they really need that extra hug.
I was talking with a friend the other day and she was telling me a story about her 6 year old daughter. She came home from school one day and was sad, so mom gave her an extra hug. Mom told the daughter, if something bad ever happens at school she could always ask for an extra hug. Well her daughter took her literally and made up a story of something bad that happened at school, just to get an extra hug. When the mom realized what was going on, she re-explained to her daughter that she can receive an EXTRA HUG at any time. It doesn’t only have to be when something bad happens at school.
While we need to feed our bodies, we also need to feed our souls. What can you do to feed your soul today? How can you help feed the souls of your loved ones?
Go and give your loved one’s an EXTRA HUG today. You might not realize just how much an extra hug might brighten their day.