Can I Share Something...

People tell me things.  Lots of things.  Amazing things.  Highly personal things and while this is not unusual within the framework of my work, in fact its necessary for my work, I'm not talking about my clients here; I'm talking about strangers; people I've never met before and will likely never meet again.

It happens quite often and it doesn't matter where I am, people seem to be drawn to me and talk to me, not the polite impersonal type of conversations, but personal, often deeply personal conversations.  It happens everywhere, standing in  line in a store, in restaurants, even waiting in an airport departure lounge...and I've been in a lot of airport departure lounges.

I've heard about people's divorces, their guilt about a wide range of things from the fight they had with their parents, to not being there when a loved one died, to everything in between.  They've told me about illnesses, operations, sexual dysfunctions (I once had a man tell me within the first 5 minutes of our conversation that he had ED), loneliness, bitterness, anger, resentment, betrayal, you name it and someone has told me about it.

I often wonder why me.  Not in the sense of being a 'victim' but in the sense of 'what is it about me that makes others feel comfortable enough to share these deeply personal aspects of their lives with me'.  While I certainly don't mind being there for them, giving them the opportunity to vent and express their fears and emotions; there is part of me that wonders why they find it easier to tell me than to tell those who they love and who supposedly love them.  After all, telling me doesn't change the situation; telling those involved is the only way to find resolution.

Perhaps in telling me they are seeking validation for how they feel.  Perhaps they just need to say these things out loud in order to determine whether or not what they are saying is really 'true for them'.  Perhaps they just need to be able to think aloud, without fear of judgment, to sort through whatever challenge they are facing.  Whatever the reason, whatever purpose I serve, I am there for them in that moment and am happy that I can assist them even if all I do is listen; which is often the case.  Everyone needs to feel they are being heard and understood; and perhaps that is my gift to them.