Life is difficult in all stages of life. As a baby it's hard because you can't do anything for yourself and you can't talk to tell anyone what it is that you need. The thing about babies is that they don't know that it's hard. As they grow, things are still hard. They have a lot of stuff to learn. They are learning to walk and talk. Fine and gross motor skills. Social mores. So many things! Sometimes they recognize that it's hard, but mostly they just do it. They have lots of support, people constantly encouraging them, helping them, picking them up when they fall. They keep going and learning.
Elementary school kids are still learning a lot as well. They are at an age when they recognize that things are hard. Math is difficult, friends can be tricky, home life requires more of them now. I look at that and would trade for that hard in a heartbeat, but for them, it is all encompassing. Their life is SO HARD. But they still have lots of people encouraging, helping and cheering them on.
Then we move into the teenage years where no one's life has ever been as hard. And no one understands. They have so many things to juggle. Still learning. Math is still hard, friends are the worst (and also the best), parents, activities, grades, chores, etc. SO HARD. They usually don't want it, but they still have a great deal of support and encouragement from the people around them.
And then we move out on our own. We go to college or get a job or both. Now we are responsible for ourselves. We have to feed ourselves, do our own laundry, make our own money, pay our own bills (hopefully you were at least doing your own laundry when you lived at home) and you still have relationships to manage, time to juggle and you are continuing to learn. It is HARD. But mom calls to check in on you, you have a night out with your friends who confirm that they too are struggling with all the hard things.
Now you're married and have some kids. And life is SO HARD. You now not only have to take care of and worry about yourself, but you also have a spouse and little people who need you. You had no idea the things that would come up! You didn't know you could be stretched this far without breaking. You didn't know you could cry so many tears, feel so alone, feel so empty and ready to give up. Maybe you keep it all bottled up and put on a brave face and no one is the wiser that you are STRUGGLING. You don't share your trials. Maybe not even with your spouse. And possibly that is making it all the more difficult and heavy to bare.
And just like all the other times in your life, you will make it through. But wouldn't it be better to make it through quicker and easier? There is no magic potion to make our troubles go away. We have to go through them. But remember, things have been HARD your whole life. They have been preparing you. You got through them and learned. And most likely you had a lot of people helping you along the way. Don't shut out those that could and would, lighten your burden. Most often, in our adult problems, there isn't much anyone else can do to take the problem away. But knowing someone is praying for you, knowing someone will listen to you, knowing someone will help you escape for 15 minutes to grab an ice cream, can be all the difference. It can fill your cup and help you fight another day.
Each stage of our lives presents trials and challenges. But each stage of our life helps prepare us for the next stage. If we allow them to, our trials will strengthen us so that we can bare the burdens that are placed upon us. We will still feel weighed down. We will still feel that sometimes, we just can't go forward another step. That is when we need to let someone hold our load for a minute. Let ourselves catch our breath, take a rest, and then get back to it. Remember you are still learning.
Life is tough! But so are you. You have made it through so much already. You can take on whatever you are faced with.
