The Unknown Beloved

by Amy Harmon

It was as if she stood with her arms wide open and said, Here I am, and the world nodded and said, Yes, you are, and gave her a wide berth, not out of fear, but out of reverence.

“It is the things we most want to put down, the things that are hardest to carry, to endure, that give our lives the most meaning. Sometimes our burdens are taken from us. And sometimes we walk away from them. Sometimes, not having that burden might even feel good. We might feel relief. But it doesn’t take long to realize that the things we call burdens are most often ballast. Our burdens give weight to everything we do. They shed light on all that we are. And the moment we lose them . . . we lose everything.”