I Believe Her Because I Am Her

Eventually, there were no more tears to cry.

Instead, I would lay in my bed broken and dehydrated, hoping the pain would end.

Truth.

An idea that we sit and listen to someone while they share a piece of their reality with us.

A moment in time when we allow someone to be vulnerable without making judgments. A time when we aren't there to fix anything or find a solution.

Last night I had a dream. A dream where I was falling after being in a building that had exploded. The type of falling dream where you can feel yourself free falling and there is nothing you can do except suddenly wake up shaken.

Those dreams take me back to that day—a day when I was wide awake but falling with no way or no one to catch me.

THE POWER OF LISTENING TO VULNERABILITY

Just imagine for a moment if we listened to the stories of people without fear, without judgment, and without our biases.

The things we would hear.

The things we would learn.

The things we could become.

We have grown to doubt the truth of others.

We have become so painfully remiss of someone's story that we no longer listen.

When listening is no longer a skill we have, where can survivors go to be heard?

The pain consumes us and we don't have the energy to fight multiple battles. So we retreat. Back to the "safety" within ourselves where the only one we are battling is ourselves.

One voice of distrust is better than many.

All along I was searching.

Searching for someone to understand without saying the words.

Searching for someone willing to listen judgment free.

Searching for someone to say, I believe you.

BELIEF BEGINS BY LETTING DOWN OUR DEFENSES

I wish I had the women in my life back then that I do now.

The women that don't fight the truth.

The women that accept I am pieced back together and that sometimes my cracks show.

The women who have pieced their lives together like a puzzle because they had no other choice.

The women cheering you on because they so fiercely believe in you.

Their belief becomes your belief and soon you are ready to step into your power like never before.

I believe you.

I see you.

I know you.

I am you.

If you would like to support me as I do the BELIEVE walk in support of S.T.A.N.D AGAINST SEXUAL ASSAULT ASSOCIATION. My goal is $500 and I am more than halfway there. When I reach my goal, I will walk 5 kilometers on March 13, 2022.