Secrets

The Oxford Dictionary says about secrets:  “known about by only a few people; kept hidden from others.”

 Usually the darker the secret, the fewer people we share them with, which in turn magnifies the power.  The true power of a secret lies in its secrecy.  The shame it harbors and feeds.  

A TV program about a man who receives, in the mail, secrets written on postcards, sent by  strangers.  A million over the past 20 years.   Most secrets involve someone else or our interaction with another or our fear of others’ opinions of us. Some are about the things we know about other individuals or groups and our determination to keep this to ourselves, hoping to prevent its spread.  Our own version of “The buck stops here.”  

The trouble is the emotional toll this takes.  Those secrets weigh on us.  If we share them with others it's like breaking the surface after being trapped under water.  We see the sunshine and breathe deeply and freely and shake off the darkness that's been suppressing us.  It literally breaks the secret's emotional chains. 

We may find we’re not the only one.  Our courage may give others the courage to reveal their own secrets.  Sometimes an epidemic.  Maybe we can put a stop to generational secrets.