Sadness

“You Don’t Have to Be Strong With Me”

There are days when sadness settles in quietly, without asking permission.
It doesn’t announce itself. It just arrives—heavy, slow, familiar.

I know you’ve learned how to keep moving anyway.
How to smile when needed.
How to carry on without letting the ache show.

But sadness isn’t a failure of faith or strength.
It’s often the evidence that something mattered deeply to you.

You don’t have to justify it.
You don’t have to explain why you’re tired or why your chest feels tight for no clear reason.

Sometimes sadness is grief you didn’t have time to feel.
Sometimes it’s disappointment that never got named.
Sometimes it’s simply the cost of caring in a world that doesn’t always handle hearts gently.

You’ve been told—directly or indirectly—that you should be over this by now. That time should have done its work faster. That gratitude should cancel out sorrow.

But healing isn’t linear, and sadness doesn’t run on a schedule.

You are allowed to slow down here.
You are allowed to feel what you feel without rushing to make it meaningful or productive.

You don’t need to be strong in this moment.
You don’t need to find a lesson.
You don’t need to pull yourself together.

Let sadness have a seat beside you instead of locking it out. It may be carrying something important—something that wants to be acknowledged, not erased.

You are not less faithful for feeling low.
You are not broken because you’re tender today.

Stay. Breathe.
This feeling is not the whole story—but it deserves to be heard.

Companion Prayer / Reflection

Prayer:
“God, I’m tired of holding this together. Sit with me in what hurts.”

Reflection Prompt:
What sadness have I been trying to rush past instead of listening to?