Blog Post

Ouch!

  • By Fatima Bey
  • 21 May, 2019

Pain? What pain?

I'm a professional seamstress. I make and design wedding gowns, among other things. The other day I was vigorously working on a wedding gown. Due to making a deadline, I was working fast. The particular sewing I was doing required my hands to move freely near the sewing machine needle. Guess what I did. Yep, I sewed right into my pointer finger! I yelled an expletive and immediately pulled my hand away before the blood came out. I got up, cleaned it off, put a band-aid on it, made sure there was no blood and went back to sewing. Yes, the needle went past my nail and into my finger! Look at that needle in this photo. Imagine that going into your finger. Ouch! 

It was extremely painful, yet I wasn't even mad. I wasn't even thinking about it a few minutes later. I had already moved on to what I needed to do next. As someone who's been sewing professionally for many years, it is common to get scratches or cuts from scissors, needles, pins, and all the other sharp things we use. So much so that I often find scratches on my arms and hands that I don't even remember getting. I'm just used to it. I'm so used to it that I didn't even freak out, cry or make a big deal about that needle sewing into my finger. Sure, it hurt a lot, but I'm used to it.

As I continued to sew, I began to think about how I went on as if it were nothing. How often in life do you ignore pain because you're "used to it"? How often do you become numb to the very thing that is causing damage and hurting you because it's so commonplace for you? Why is it okay that he abuses you? The wounds heal, right? You're used to it. Why is it okay that they constantly talk down to you? It's no big deal. You're used to it. Right? Why do you keep getting into the same type of bad relationships? It's what you're used to. You don't even notice anymore. This is all bad. It's bad when you've become desensitized to your own demise. 

When God created us He did a magnificent job! One of those things was creating a body that science will never stop trying to understand. In our bodies, generally speaking, we experience pain when something is wrong. If we didn't experience pain, we would likely never fix the problem. The same is often true with life. Our emotional pain is an indicator of other and usually deeper things. That painful thing that you're used to, perhaps it's time to get UN-used to it. Don't keep allowing that thing or person to continue to do damage to you.
 
There are many ways in which this subject you can apply this subject to yourself. I am not talking to everyone with this post, but I am talking to many of you. Start paying attention to your pain. That's the only way you can begin to deal with it and uproot the problem. Don't wallow in self-pity either. That's just as bad. Decide today that you're no longer going to allow or accept your mistreatment, abuse or put-downs as just something you live with. You really don't have to. Whether you do or not is not up to anyone but you.
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Definition of hindrance: 
  • a thing that provides resistance, delay, or obstruction to something or someone.
Sometimes the people we think should be in our lives are the very ones hindering us from moving forward. What do I mean? How does that happen? Let me explain.

Is there anything you used to do that you no longer do and it's a good thing that you no longer do it? Is there a way you used to think and you no longer think that way? Are there places you used to go or hang out in that you don't anymore? These things happen with growth. Those who aren't growing with you might not understand.

A recovered alcoholic is a great example  of this. Let's call him Bob. Bob used to hang out at the bars with a certain group of friends. They would also hang out at the same houses. They would drink themselves silly regularly. Alcoholics don't usually just drink in groups, they usually drink alone too. One day Bob decides to be more productive with his life and wants to stop drinking. He eventually wins that battle, which is not easy. Some of Bob's old drinking buddies don't like or understand why he's not hanging out with them anymore. They accuse him of being uppity and a bad friend. If Bob were to listen to these "friends", he would feel bad about his own recovery. He would feel bad about this great accomplishment. He might even fall back into old habits by listening to them. Should he? Of course not! 

What should you do when this happens to you? Move on! You may not have been an alcoholic, but you have something or old ways in your past that you don't want to be held to. You may find that, as you grow, some of your old friends may not be your friends anymore. This is not a bad thing. Some of them will hold you back by holding you to your old self or old mentality. That's the exact opposite of what you need. Some of those people you grew up with may be the ones I'm talking about. Some may even be relatives. Generally speaking, if they can't GROW WITH you, they can't GO WITH you! If people want to keep holding you to your former self, they are stuck in your past. You should leave them there, since they refuse to move. Replace them with people that are where you are headed. Replace them with people who will help you grow. Some of these people are not ill intended, but they will hinder you none the less. You can't change the past. Surround yourself with those who understand that and are focused on your future.
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I have finally decided to take the plunge and add a blog to my site. I am constantly sharing words of wisdom on social media. Here, I will be able to expand on that wisdom in more detail and share my insight on the world. Come back frequently to see what's new.

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