I love the Irish language and it’s always been a regret of mine that I was never fluent in Irish. Having lived in London until I was 9 meant that I was always playing catch-up with Irish. Plus living near the Gaeltacht but not living in the Gaeltacht meant that I wasn’t immersed in it in the way that I would have liked. I love the way we say ‘Ta bron orm’- which in English means ‘sadness is on me’. It’s such a beautiful way to say it. Sadness is on me. But it is not all of me.
Even thinking about emotions in this way is empowering for me. Sadness might be on me but I am not sadness and it doesn’t have me. All emotions are temporary and that can be hard to remember when you’re feeling crappy and stuck in the darkness. But after darkness comes the light, that is guaranteed every single day. Remember that you’re not alone and you are stronger than you will ever know. But it is hard to remember this when you’re feeling awful. It’s all very well understanding that this is the facts- yes light always comes after the darkness. But when you’re in the darkness it does NOT feel this way.
I’m learning how to trust that things will get better especially when I feel like they never will. It’s a process and a skill you have to practice. I’m not great at it, but any skill worth mastering takes time and I’m prepared to keep practicing it until I no longer need to.