571.

Today I saw this in my travels on the web. Similar messages have been appearing along my path for the past few weeks, in various incarnations.

It's a reminder...

So many souls are damaged by the careless actions of others, intentionally as well as accidentally.

So many live their lives appearing outwardly "normal" but inwardly clawing at the secrets that destroy them in tiny increments.

Those secrets also touch the lives of those who are drawn into the orbit of those damaged souls.

Hence the truth that lies within the statement above.

Even if we know from the outset that we've encountered a damaged soul and we make the choice to love them any way, it is when we choose to love them that we sometimes become privy to the depths of their pain.

If the other is seeking help in a genuine effort to learn healthy ways to express and eradicate the pain, it may work out well.

If so, congratulations to all.

But if that's not the case, there needs to be a plan of action for disengagement and self-protection. Because regardless of who, what, when, where, or how, it's good to know in advance how to proceed in such encounters.

This is where self-love and self-esteem become great assets. If these attributes don't already exist within oneself, the road to freedom could be tortuous; perhaps even dangerous.

And what are we to learn from this?

Not about "them" but about us, that will assist as we dance along the road to Nirvana?

Something(s) to think about as we sail myriad seas of interpersonal interaction...

Amen.