My mother has had the same phone number as long as I can remember. Oh, there have been slight variations. The full number remains the same, but in the beginning we used to only dial the last five digits. Years later, kicking and screaming, we had to dial 7 digits. Then, if out of town, the full 7, along with the 3 numbers of the area code. 

I laugh when I think of how tragic we thought each move was. How would we ever survive???? We did.

It’s amazing how many things, through these many years, I have thought would be unsurvivable, unbearable, unforgivable. And yet…

Even though most circumstances move from the unforgettable to the forgettable – I try to pull them up once in a while, when I’m in the middle of a difficult time. Not to dwell, but to learn, to comfort even. Look, I say, you made it through this, and I pull up the memory like a five digit number. And when things get really hard, I can reach as far as 10. And I survived. We survived. We will make it through this day as well. 

It’s good to remember that you are never alone. Someone, somewhere, has gone through and survived what you are dealing with today. And sometimes, that someone, is you. Don’t ever forget how strong you are.