Lessons from an Onion

Therapy can often feel like peeling back the layers of an onion, but if we keep peeling there might eventually be nothing left. What if we look at it like we are bursting forth from the layers and the rot and messiness of the onion, and blooming…bursting forth in a beautiful collection of small flowers? Like each little flower that helps form the bright ball of colour is one of our new discoveries.

I had a rough couple of days and over-reacted to some strong, emotional triggers. It felt like instead of carefully peeling back any layers, someone had just come and stomped on the onion with his big, heavy boots. All that growing was just squashed, and I couldn’t seem to access any of the strength or resolve that I needed.

I really don’t know much about healing trauma, and equally don’t understand what I’m trying to say. But, maybe the peeling of the onion and tears that it produces are necessary for growth. So I’ll have to think of two onions…one that gets peeled, and the other that grows and blossoms.