Since the beginning of time, humans were designed to depend on one another. As we journey through life, especially our toughest seasons, we can find freedom and relief in letting our guards down and reaching out to those who love us the most.
Photo by Ellie DuBroc
After their 13-3 win against Lindenwood-Belleville, women’s lacrosse players Audrey Frost, a junior communications major, Maggie McDaniel, a junior history major, and Stacy Rohan, a junior journalism major, celebrate their undefeated fall season. True victory is found in fighting through life alongside loved ones.
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Galatians 6:2 tells us to bear one another’s burdens. Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 teaches that “two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil, and if either of them falls down, one can help the other up.” Note the commonalities of these verses: Encourage one another, build one another up. Bear each other’s burdens, two are better than one. Through the pain, chaos and trials of life, people need people. On the sixth day of creation, God made both Adam and Eve. Humans were designed, from the beginning of time, to walk through life together. To be unified. Even before He breathed Adam and Eve into existence, our all-knowing, all-powerful God knew that we could not walk through this life alone. The Lord first made Adam, and then, using one of Adam’s ribs, He made Eve. I believe the reasoning for this initial fellowship digs even deeper than His instruction to multiply the Earth’s population. In the billions of years that have passed since that day, every practical detail of life as we know it has evolved. But truths are truths, and the truths of the Lord remain permanent and everlasting. This includes mankind’s dire need for companionship. Throughout my life, more specifically as I’ve surpassed my teenage years and entered adulthood, it’s become much less natural to open my heart to others, to let them in and ask for help when I need it. There’s a stigma around this kind of vulnerability, an unspoken expectation to be able to handle our baggage on our own. In many ways, I’m still transparent with my loved ones, and I leap out of my comfort zone in order to share my stories with you, my readers. In the last few years, however, I’ve grown more naturally inclined to run the opposite direction from this sort of accountability. I’m learning a lot about myself lately, and this is heavy on my heart: When we find ourselves afraid of sharing our pain with those who we know care deeply about us, that’s most likely our cue to do just that, share. It’s easy to get lost in the mess. It’s natural to feel the need to dig ourselves out of holes, especially when we feel we’ve dug them ourselves. But doing the thing that seems impossible — letting our guards down and asking for help — this is where the freedom lies. We can’t go through this life alone. We were carefully and intentionally designed to depend on one another, especially in our seasons of confusion and doubt. Avoiding our internal battles and hiding from the people who love us the most will only lead us down a path of destruction. So, if you’re searching for relief, then stop searching alone. Lock arms with the people you trust and let them love you. I can personally attest that in doing so, you’ll experience the sense of renewal your heart has been longing for.
Triston Buckley 
Emily Retzer