Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning how to dance in the rain! Vivian Greene

Have you ever wondered why a family seems to be plagued or cursed by certain social ailments? Why education is not enough to open the doors of affluence? Why abuse repeats? Why poverty sticks? Why giving the homeless a home is not enough? Why some are paralyzed in live and others soar? How a beautiful family who has "overcome so much" could have children who do not thrive?

Well in researching the connection between over-functioning co-dependents and trauma I stumbled across some writings about generational trauma. When parent experience trauma and do not sort through the aftermath there are affects that are passed down to children. Many abused children repeat the abuse, a sick way that our concision is trying to work out what has happened to us. Sadly our brains will continue to rehash trauma at times causing more damage than the original event. We can learn a coping skill that is necessary to survive when young but causes trouble once we are adults.

Poverty has been on my mind lately. Poverty is its own kind of trauma and the affects vary depending on how a family coped and enriched life. A very cheap and available enrichment is alcohol while another is reading. You can see how these two activities both provide escape and entertainment but one can bring on a whole other slew of trauma into a family unit. My mother read while my father drank.

I have in the past been thankful that my father did not repeat the physical abuse of his childhood and given him a pass on the emotional trauma my family experienced through him. Right now I see things differently. I carry shadows of my dad's trauma. His fear of death and disease. His hyper-vigilance, his poor sleep patterns, this list continues. I think you get the picture.

So am I cursed to traumatize those around me? Hell No! But if I were not actively engaged in life, in growth, in change the danger of traumatizing others would be greater. We are all responsible to sort through life, gaining the skills to move through trauma is a skill you learn.

So if it is raining or has rained in your life there is hope. Dancing is beautiful! Humanity is resilient. Find a guide to healing and remember it gets better.

My guide has been Jesus the Messiah, Romans 15:13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

"In this way trauma becomes woven into the identity of a family or culture, racial or ethnic group."

I am working on a series of posts that deal with trauma. For those who spend time with me you know this is perhaps my "favorite" topic right now. I have started delving into the connections between trauma in my life and a tendency towards co-dependence in my relationships. Today I walked through the Oregon Holocaust Memorial in Washington Park I was struck by the idea of a generational impact. The intensity of this trauma! I have read many books about this period and have many times wondered how the Jewish people had the will to survive. How could they pick up and live again. They are a light to me a reminder that there is so much potential for resiliency in mankind. So I invite you on this journey with me through some dark spaces... but as you read remember I am building my memorial wall so that I can leave things in the past and walk out into the light.