These Wounds Will Heal

Katey Kratz sitting on a balcony

Last night, I sat down on my couch with my watercolors and began to paint.  I doodled circles and began filling them in with vibrant, vivid rainbow colors.  Red, orange, yellow, green, etc.  The bright pops of color in the aesthetically pleasing shapes, all flowing together nicely.

After only a few minutes on this project, I was bored.  So very bored. It didn’t feel right.  I was painting something that someone else had shown me.  I was trying to replicate something and do something simple and pretty.

It was supposed to be a background activity that helped me relax for the night, but instead started feeling more and more like a chore.  Like something I had to do because someone else said so.

So, I started over.  I set that painting aside and got out a fresh piece of watercolor paper.  I followed my heart and intuition. I created a thick red line…adding to and darkening the line, then smearing the red in streaks across a page. 

It reminded me of blood.  Of a fresh bleeding cut that, when you go to wipe it, leaves streaks across your skin.  A cut where you have to hold pressure to get it to stop bleeding…And when it finally does, it still hurts.  It stings.  It feels tender.   It hurts for weeks. And when you bump into something accidentally, you suddenly remember it exists and you wince. 

Katey Kratz - “wounds that will heal”

But those cuts, those wounds, they heal.  With time, they slowly fade into the background until you almost forget that they existed in the first place.  The next time you bump into the same silly thing where that cut had been, you don’t wince.  There is no blood to see.  No streaks on the skin. No physical reminder of a pain that existed.  Of a traumatic event.  All of a sudden, you realize, it’s gone. 

The wound that once was all consuming, has healed.
The trauma that you had lived has faded to a memory. 
The incident has shifted in your mind to become something less tragic and perhaps even humorous. 

That wound… healed.

Katey Kratz observing the Austin, TX skyline

No matter how it seemed, that wound didn’t heal on its own.

You took care of it.  Cleaned it.  Bandaged it.  Tried to not re-injure it.  And when the time was right, you gave it air and space to breath.  To heal in the elements.

You avoided activities that caused further damage and took steps to ensure the healing process could happen.

You eliminated sources of potential infection, protected it, and did what needed to be done to help the healing process.  You gave your wounds the right care and attention so that they healed properly, leaving the least scar possible.  

Those wounds were able to heal because YOU put in the work and effort to help them.

YOU did that. YOU did the work. YOU put in the effort.
YOU made the CHOICE to heal.

But, how do you treat your emotional wounds? How do you treat those hidden injuries and points of hurt?

Do you give them the same care and attention you would your physical injuries?

Do you make choices that help them heal in a healthy environment?

Or… do you ignore them and instead say, “It’ll be better tomorrow”. 

Healing doesn’t happen on its own. 
Happiness doesn’t happen on its own. 

It is a choice.
A series of decisions to care about your own well-being and health. A conscious step to create a happier life.

What choices are you making?

Reach out today to learn how I can help you create a happier, more-fulfilling life. 

<3 Katey