“Janie was a short, petite woman about 40 years old with short dark hair. She was soft spoken and came across as a very kind person. Janie accompanied her daughter to the lesson and while the girl plunked out a tune on the piano, Janie asked, "Shawna, you told me that you write poetry. Would you be willing to share some of your poetry with me?’"
“I was pleased that she remembered and decided there had to be one or two poems that weren’t too revealing about my life, that I could read to her. I took her upstairs to my bedroom where I had been sorting through my poetry. There were several piles of printed poems spread out all over the floor. Janie quickly glanced around the room with a curious expression on her face and asked, ‘Did you write all of these poems?’”
“‘Yes.’”
“‘Why do so many of them have different names as authors?’”
“I was stunned. I felt like a rabbit caught in a trap. I had forgotten that the poems were written by different parts of me and that I had written the authors' names on some of them. Oh, why had I done this to myself? I was extremely embarrassed and didn't know what to say. How could I explain something as complex as DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) or MPD (Multiple Personality Disorder) without disclosing way too much? I was determined that I would not fully disclose to someone I hardly knew, so I said, ‘Some bad things happened to me when I was a young child and because I was so young, I created pretend friends, or parts of my personality to hold onto the memories for me and these “parts” wrote some of the poems.’”
“Janie seemed to take this in stride and said, ‘Oh, you mean like multiple personality? I know someone else who has “parts,” too.’”
“After she left, I wondered how she would react to me the next time we saw each other. Little did either of us know this awkward introduction to my private world would be the beginning of a very intense journey in which Janie would assume a role she could not have anticipated.” (The Silent Cries, pages 17-18)
Many of our blessings come in unanticipated ways. Sometimes we have pre-conceived notions of how God can bless us and if He blesses us in different ways, we don’t see God’s hand. God is much more free to bless us if we do not put boundaries or limits on the ways He can be involved in our lives. Try to trust that God does love you and wants to help you and then take notice when He does.
“I was pleased that she remembered and decided there had to be one or two poems that weren’t too revealing about my life, that I could read to her. I took her upstairs to my bedroom where I had been sorting through my poetry. There were several piles of printed poems spread out all over the floor. Janie quickly glanced around the room with a curious expression on her face and asked, ‘Did you write all of these poems?’”
“‘Yes.’”
“‘Why do so many of them have different names as authors?’”
“I was stunned. I felt like a rabbit caught in a trap. I had forgotten that the poems were written by different parts of me and that I had written the authors' names on some of them. Oh, why had I done this to myself? I was extremely embarrassed and didn't know what to say. How could I explain something as complex as DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) or MPD (Multiple Personality Disorder) without disclosing way too much? I was determined that I would not fully disclose to someone I hardly knew, so I said, ‘Some bad things happened to me when I was a young child and because I was so young, I created pretend friends, or parts of my personality to hold onto the memories for me and these “parts” wrote some of the poems.’”
“Janie seemed to take this in stride and said, ‘Oh, you mean like multiple personality? I know someone else who has “parts,” too.’”
“After she left, I wondered how she would react to me the next time we saw each other. Little did either of us know this awkward introduction to my private world would be the beginning of a very intense journey in which Janie would assume a role she could not have anticipated.” (The Silent Cries, pages 17-18)
Many of our blessings come in unanticipated ways. Sometimes we have pre-conceived notions of how God can bless us and if He blesses us in different ways, we don’t see God’s hand. God is much more free to bless us if we do not put boundaries or limits on the ways He can be involved in our lives. Try to trust that God does love you and wants to help you and then take notice when He does.
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