Healing Through a Teacher's Concern

5-10-11

Today my sister needed me to drive her to school in the middle of the day. Apparently they had nothing for the seniors to do during state testing so they didn’t have to come to school until lunch time. After saying bye to her I walked around the school for awhile and talking to some of my high school teachers. I thought that since I just graduated college, it was an appropriate time to visit them. J I visited one of my English teachers and then my Visual and Performing Arts teacher. He was my dance instructor. I was a dancer in high school. It’s one of those things that sets me on fire and makes me feel like I’m flying. I don’t get to dance much these days, but I had such an awesome time on the dance team in high school.

Later, I ran into my U.S. History teacher. He was one of my very favorite teachers when I was in high school and I always felt safe around him, though I didn’t trust many males. We started talking about God and hard times in life and I told him that I’d had PTSD most of the time I was in college. He was stunned and asked me why. I told him that I was abused; I didn’t specify what kind of abuse. He was shocked and asked me who, so I told him. I was surprised that he asked questions because a lot of people are really uncomfortable with talking about sexual abuse. He asked for more information, not in a creepy, invasive way but out of true concern. I told him that I had been raped more than once, told my last semester of high school, and fell completely apart. He gave me a hug and expressed concern for my well being. I know now that, had I told him when I was in high school, he would have definitely taken me seriously. The thought never occurred to me back then. I couldn’t even tell my own father, I had to tell a female. Just like when my psychology professor’s daughter hugged me, when I talked about the abuse with my history teacher I felt God take a hold of my heart and heal a deep part of me that had been broken. God is so amazing and mysterious in the way that he heals us. My history teacher was the first man that I told, in person, that I was sexually abused. I was able to talk about it with him and I wasn’t afraid. I didn’t go numb, I didn’t have panicked thoughts that he would somehow hurt me because I had to become vulnerable to tell him. I felt completely safe. It was really powerful and healing. God works through so many different people in so many different ways to accomplish his plans. I’m just so amazed at how God is working in my life right now. It reminds me of a Bible verse “‘For I know the plans I have for you’, says the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a future and a hope.’” (Jeremiah 29:11).

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