How Hard Seasons Help You Grow

Have you ever been through a trial that left you weak? Or a loss or heartbreak that felt unbearable?

In this episode, you’ll hear two original poems, Haven and Unsinkable, written by Lia Girard, and explore ways your struggles have actually made you stronger. 

Written in different seasons of hardship and healing, Lia reminds you: it’s your choice to free yourself.

Today’s episode invites you to: 

- replace lies with truth

- release the weight of past pain when you’re ready

- anticipate your own renewal

You’ll also be given a word, inspired by the poem, to ponder as your week unfolds. 

Lia Girard is a poet, writer, author, wife, and mom whose feature articles are found on iBelieve.com, Crosswalk.com, and other inspirational platforms. 

You can explore her poetry, often inspired by the wonders of nature, on Instagram: @wildpeace.poetry. 

If you love the show, or any episode resonates with you, please rate or review the show on your favorite platform, or email your feedback to lia@wildpeacepoetry.com.

Transcript

Speaker 0:02

Hello and welcome to Heart of a Wildflower. This is a space that invites you to slow down, reconnect, and find beauty in every season. I'm Lia Girard, your host, and I'm so glad you're here. In each episode, we'll consider an aspect of love, longing, or life, such as heartache, healing, or hope, by reading and exploring poetry together. We'll end with a thoughtful word or phrase to contemplate as your week unfolds. Today I'd like to share two short poems about how hard things help us grow. Whatever you might be facing, or going through, or coming out of, these two poems are here to show you your own spirit of survival. Whatever feels hard to hold right now, whether it's loss of something or someone or a seemingly endless waiting, a diagnosis, personal tragedy, or any heavy burden, you will get through it and get stronger in the process, either in your physical form or your faith. The first poem is one I wrote while I was struggling to understand why I was deceived and cast aside by someone I'd given my entire self to. Maybe you too have been told that you're too much to handle, too needy, too expressive, too in the way, or not enough of something or any insult that you took to heart. Maybe you too have believed deeply what others have said to hurt you. Or maybe you've felt entirely lost, as though you're out in the middle of a downpour. As an offer of hope, our first poem today is titled Haven. This very small poem of only sixteen words developed during my own dissection of destruction. It represents a whittling all the way down to what is true. In a grieving season, discovering what's true for you is often the only way through. Haven. And one day she learned that she was a storm and also her own safe place. Have you ever eaten a steady diet of someone's disapproval or unforeseen disasters and started believing it was all your fault? That there's just something insufferable about you. I know this feeling, and the truth is none of us are in the way. We're all here on purpose. You sometimes just need to identify where your heart and soul are safe to grow. While walking in this valley, I realized that I had the power inside me to survive any storm. I learned I could trust my own instincts and a higher power. And you can too. If you're drawn to scripture, here's an excellent practice. Write down a mean thing you've been told about yourself on one side of an index card. Then write a scriptural truth that refutes that lie on the other side. You can do this instead with quotes from inspiring people you admire, or even truths you've cultivated about yourself through deep searching and time. This overturning of lies is an act of faith, but science has also proven that purposely reciting positivity over yourself can actually form new neural pathways. What you tell yourself becomes what you believe and hold on to in your mind and heart and soul. In the case of this poem, I had finally decided, and I was happy to admit that, yes, I can be a storm sometimes, but I also now know where I find safety and peace. Our second poem, titled Unsinkable, honors the choice you can make to move beyond whatever hurts, maybe holding you back. Unsinkable. And maybe the stones you collected on the inside during the hardest season built, the strength you've now gathered to finally skip them far out across the water. I wrote this poem after my years of wandering while living in a new marriage of truth and grace. This is the feeling I want for you too, the thrill of finally being able to lift the heavy stones that built your wall of fear and let them go, even if it's in stages, one by one. Joy is waiting there for you on the other side. In time, you can not only rid yourself of past trauma, but do so with a free spirit. As we close, I'd like to leave you with a word from the second poem to ponder. And that word is stones. Have you ever found a special stone? When you imagine it, does it remind you of a time in your life or a place that you love? If you've never been inspired by a stone, then maybe this week you can allow yourself to go look for one. You don't need to keep it, just appreciate that it caught your eye and that its color, its shape, its design, facets, and feel are all incomparable. It has a past, a journey, and a story. Let it remind you this week that you can't carry every stone. By releasing past burdens and carrying only the things you choose to value, you can eventually find that skip in your step through whatever life brings. Thank you for spending this time with me today. I hope it offered you room to reflect and reconnect with yourself. If this episode spoke to you, please share it with a friend or drop me an email at lia@wildpeacepoetry.com. That's L I A at wildpeacepoetry.com. You can also find my poetry and message me on Instagram : @wildpeace.poetry. Until next time, keep blooming in your own wild and wonderful way.