A nice email from a friend made my day!

I received the nicest email from a friend who has a career in law and knows the domestic violence realm quite well. When I filed for divorce last February and then filed an Order of Protection against my husband, this same friend suggested that I go buy the book "The Sociopath Next Door." That book was just the beginning of what is now my library of books on sociopaths and abusers that I've read over the last several months to educate myself enough to hopefully avoid a future nightmare like the one I've just survived.

Anyway, I digress ... back to the nice email ....

So this friend of mine emailed me the absolute nicest note after he visited this blog for the first time. I was really touched and want to share it here. As any blogger or writer knows, writing is a very solitary endeavor. It's just you and your computer. And when you're attempting to spread a worthwhile message or push an advocacy agenda, you often wonder if anyone else out there is reading what you're working so hard to put into words. My friend's email is all the more appreciated because he reminded me that this kind of work can indeed make an impact.

Here's what he wrote to me:

"Your OOP survival blog is very powerful! One of the great things that I admire about you, Kristin, is your ability to 'find your voice,' and use it to affect true change. I know very well how painful it is to discuss and rehash painful experiences that we have experienced, but in some small way it is quite liberating. I used to think that the phrase 'time heals all wounds' meant that I had to wait years to start to feel 'normal' again. But I have since learned that I am in charge of my own healing process.

I believe wholeheartedly that great things are in store for you. Personally and professionally. You have truly been blessed with an abundance of gifts, talents and insight that needs to be shared. I can say with absolute certainty that ANYONE who comes into contact with you will find themselves forever changed.

Beyond surviving the horrible atrocities you have endured, you are thriving. You have been faced with reprehensible trials in your life, but you have emerged stronger, more focused, and infinitely more resilient. Keep moving forward confidently in your journey with the self-assuredness that you possess. Wishing you serenity, and boundless joy."

How nice is that?!? (Thank you, my friend!!)

Incredibly, it has only been about 6 months since I was quite literally in the fetal position, my self esteem cruelly crushed and my life filled with terror. I'd have thought that it would have been my husband who would write me a nice email - the kind (like the one above) that would lift me up, filled with caring thoughts that would make me feel like I'm glowing from the inside out. It shouldn't have been my husband who smashed my heart, annihilated my self worth and obliterated my feelings with twisted, cruel, obscene words.

But .... things, and people, aren't always what they seem. Or what they should be. So I'll press on, move forward with this blog and keep trying to advocate so that other women can hopefully avoid the situation that I found myself in. And I will appreciate every single nice email and blog comment that comes my way and lifts my spirits as I continue my journey of healing and recovery.