As I work on making pages for the menu bar up there, I will periodically post the text of the pages in my regular posts.  The following is the text for the Menu Page titled “Sexual Abuse.”  

To the following I will add this: It has taken me many years to come to the place where I could write about this publicly.  One of my main hesitations has been a fear of hurting the feelings of the people I love.  It is with deep consideration of those feelings that I now choose to proceed.

I didn’t intent to write about sexual abuse on this blog.  I’d much rather write about homeschooling, and post pictures of our latest Nature Study Day.  But the words about sexual abuse keep finding their way to my fingers.  In some ways I feel like I’ll never be able to write about anything else, if I don’t first give this part of my story a voice.

I’m not a project completed, nor a problem all figured out.  I always thought mine was not a “serious case” of abuse, yet here I am 30 years later, still affected.  These things need to be spoken: not merely my story, but all of ours. I want to see the veil pulled back on this subject. I firmly believe in the healing granted by and experienced in Jesus Christ.  I fully accept that such healing can happen both in miraculous moments and in life-long journeys.  I understand that these two experiences of healing are often twined together in a single life.

When I write of sexual abuse, I will write of what I know, and wonder about that which I don’t.  I will share stories but not be too graphic,  be transparent but not too intimate. I will teach but try not to preach,  and I will try to always speak from my heart.

The words “Sexual Abuse” will always be in the titles of the posts, both for the sake of potential triggering and for the sake of readers who’d rather not spend time on such a heavy topic.  I’d love for you to read along and join in on the conversations in the comments and on Facebook–regardless of whether or not you can personally relate–but I know our attention is precious and we must be stewards of both our mind and our time. I do ask that if the subject makes you critical, please either find a way to come at it with a teachable spirit, or simply apply your boundaries and stay away.

All Sexual Abuse Posts Found Here and Here

Disclaimer: I am not a licensed therapist, counselor or minister.  I am just a woman with a story and a hope.  All opinions are my own.