Metal is interesting stuff. Take a paper clip, made from steel. You can bend it a little fairly often. You can bend it a lot a few times.

After just a few big bends or many small bends, the metal fatigues. It begins to crumble, and eventually the paper clip snaps.

There’s no way to repair it once the metal has fatigued, save to melt it down and recast it again as a new paper clip.

Summer 2008 Photos

When you think about it, we’re much the same way.

We can handle a little bit of stress for a long time, or a lot of stress a few times, but eventually we snap; we physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually crumble.

If we’re lucky, we experience catharsis, a meltdown, as a way to recast ourselves to be just as strong, maybe even a little bit stronger.

The lesson here is that when you hit fatigue, when you’ve broken, you may not be able to piece things back together.

Sometimes it may not even be worth trying.

Instead, like melting down and recasting, you have to start over. That’s perfectly okay. Let yourself be okay with that.


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