Misery Loves Company, part 1
Sunday, February 1st, 2009
Death Valley, CA
Misery loves company. We usually interpret this maxim to mean that people in pain* want those around them to be miserable, too. Some probably wish for that, but, more commonly, people who suffer often want only simple companionship as they endure a journey through the valley.
The other night, one friend, normally a bubbly sort, was sharing the fact that he had become depressed. So many aspects of his life that had been a source of joy and provision had suddenly fallen apart. Disappointment with a friend, loss of a job, radical changes to his responsibilities, and so on, were bringing him down emotionally and financially.
A group of his friends took him to task. They tried to get him to see the error in his thinking. They challenged him not to exaggerate. They dismissed the severity of his issues. They asked him to “count his blessings,” and then started a list for him. As if that weren’t enough, they (more…)