The Rock with Holes in it

I got this story in an email.  I wanted to share it with you.

At an event I was at recently we were asked to bring stones as part of our gifts to the newly married couple (kind of like bringing something symbolic to a blessingway). Some people talked about the stone they brought and why they brought it. One woman (I didn’t know her before this event) brought this rock about the size of my palm with about three good sized holes in it that looked ideal for slipping fingers through (so about the diameter of average woman fingers). She referred to the recent floods and informed those of us that didn’t know her that her home was located in an area that was hit hard when the 17 inches of rain caused a nearby creek to go over its banks in addition to the other flash flooding. After the waters receded she said she found this rock. She looked at the rock and noticed the holes in the rock and theorized that the holes allowed the water to go right through it so that it was not washed away by the flood waters and instead was able to hold its place in the ground. While many other things that were seemingly permanent (from trees to sides of hills) were washed away, this smallish rock was able to remain. She then used this analogy with the newly married couple to be like this rock and let some hardships “flow through them.”

While I listened to this, what I heard was more about grieving moms and others that have holes in their hearts. Our holes in our hearts can be so very painful and at the same time they are simply a part of us know. Our hearts beat WITH the holes in them.

We don’t need to think in terms of mending our holes. We can simply go on (or stay firm in our place on the earth?) with the holes. And maybe they can even help us through troubled waters.