If you cried during the Kavanaugh-Ford testimony today, I said a prayer for you. I didn’t know your name, but God does.
You might have cried because you were one of the 1-in-6 men abused during their lifetime. Since that happens to most of you before you leave high school, you were also a child victim. And you’re one of the people who doesn’t get much sympathy because grown men aren’t supposed to cry, and shame is like hot tar; it sticks and burns long after it hits. I’m praying for God’s sheltering wings to cover and cool you.
Or because you were one of the 1-in-3 women who is assaulted in her lifetime. For us it can happen at almost any age. If the words they said made you hear his breathing, smell the background, feel fingers on your skin so that you wanted to rip it off and be nothing but air, I’m praying for God to hide you in the shadow of his hand, and help you feel safe until the footsteps and doors and voices die down again.
Maybe you cried because your tormentor is still out there, and you never got justice. Maybe you cried because you did get justice, but it didn’t make a difference to how much you still need help repairing your life. There are no “shoulds” in recovering from the breech of trust that happens to so many of us before we’re old enough to vote. I’m praying you find peace.
Were you told to be quiet, not embarrass the family, to “just stay away” from the weird neighbor or uncle? Maybe you were unsure who was at fault. Because it had to be yours.
The thing I’m praying most, for all of you who cried, is that you find someone to talk to. You need to. I’m asking God to bring you someone safe, someone who will be there, and point him or her out to you. Talk. Get it out, no matter how long it’s been in there. You need to talk.
Bless you. Be safe. Be strong.
Wendy Welch: Books, Yarn, Cats, Opioids 
Amen and amen. Thank you, Wendy.
Amen.
Wonderfully wise and comforting.
In the midst of all the political anger, there is all this pain from survivors coming to the surface. Thank you for thinking of them, and giving them love and prayers. May they find solace.
Thank you for these powerful, needed words.
Thank you for this compassionate response that affirms the dignity and worth of all the invisible victims who endure their suffering in silence.
Love and caring should be so simple. . .Thank you for expressing this so clearly. . . to the victims and to those who would be there for them.
Listening to the news of Senator Flake choosing to vote for a sexual predator. I thought better of him. Listening to these precedings makes me wonder if ANY of them have listened to the horror of the stories that have been told of being assaulted. Shame on them. Godde, help us all.
Beautiful words. Thank you.
This is precious. Thank you for your words.
Wendy,
This is one of your finest pieces of writing–poignant, powerful, unforgettable. Thank you for writing it. May God bless YOU.
Elizabeth
Wendy, I was moved by your words, and shared them on Knitting Paradise, an international knitting forum of (mostly) women who engage in timely discussions. I thought you might like to see the responses generated here: http://www.knittingparadise.com/t-565923-3.html#12955806