By Moses Bulamu
moses.bulamu@gmail.com
In my opinion, the best Reading Book I did with my Grade Six Class them days was Sounder by William H Armstrong. In the Book, which you probably won’t go out to read, the main Character has a dog called Sounder. So, the name of the dog lends to the Title of the book. One of my blessings has been the ability to bring books to life! I am thankful to God, I have read to little ones, to preteens, and to teens, and never have I struggled to light up a book! Even a non-word book! But that’s that, blowing my trumpet all in tune.
The dog gets shot by a sherrif as it’s trying to rescue it’s boss. The book has Sounder disappear in the forest for weeks,then reappearing with only three legs,one ear,one eye and with no barking rights! Still with the book the lad who owned the dog, together with his mama nurse the dog back to life! Dog and humans are reunited as a family.I love dogs,and I know it’s their practice to disappear ,help themselves on herbs and then get back home for a complete therapy.
That’s where you and I come in as men. A man needs time off to heal. You need time to wander off so you can ask yourself hard questions. Answers to those questions might not be readily available but the process of being alone to reflect is healthy. I think T.S Elliott calls it the ” discipline of loneliness” A certain loneliness that is not calling a pity party but one that unlearns to relearn.
My friend Mark Carolan in his talk about the Four pillars of a man’s Mental Health,factors connection as key to ‘medicating’ Mental Health. Sounder got his healing through family. They nursed him with love and care to good health. You and I need a medication called connection. A brotherhood. Some people have called it the tribe,where Mental Health issues are addressed as they are. This connection is a pathway to healing.
I wonder,have we been raised to do self reflection? Have we been raised to understand meaning and purpose? Or we get good at doing a postmortem of our failures? Am just thinking aloud as I end this article.
Florence Nightingale! ” I would rather a hundred hands crying on my shoulders than carry a coffin”
It’s Mental Health Awareness Month. Let’s make it count! .#SelfValidation #MentalHealthMatters #HealingJourney #YouAreEnough #MindsetShift #EmotionalWellness #SelfLove #InnerPeace
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