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Packing Light

August, 2006

By Trish Berg

Sometimes you think you know somebody, have them figured out - hook, line and sinker. Until you are trapped with them in a storm shelter during a tornado, ride in a car with them on a cross country road trip, or travel to a women’s conference with them.

Last week, I traveled to the Women of Faith Conference, and met someone I thought I already knew - ME.

Sitting beside over twelve thousand women all singing, laughing, crying and nodding, I discovered there’s more to me than meets the eye. Speaker after speaker revealed the very basic truths about who we are as women. Suddenly, I became as transparent as Saran wrap, seeing myself in each of their stories.

Speaker Nicole Johnson told a story of feeling inadequate and alone for much of her childhood, sitting in the high school cafeteria in her ugly purple Converse high tops. My high tops were pink, but I felt just as alone at times. Will anyone be my friend?

Christian singer Natalie Grant shared her five year struggle with bulimia, and her life long struggle with being a people pleaser, seeking out others acceptance for her self worth. Though I’ve never suffered from bulimia, I am a people pleaser. Are you happy with me?

God created women in every shape and size. On the outside we may look different, but on the inside we are more alike than we care to admit. We all carry around a lot of baggage, some of it stuffed in our purses, and a lot of it stuffed in our soul.

Find a tear in your shirt? Here’s a mini sewing kit. Your bra strap has broken? Here’s s safety pin. Have a headache? Of course I have some Tylenol. Have your eyebrows migrated to your chin? Yep, here’s some tweezers, pluck away my friend.

Though our purse baggage may weigh us down, sometimes we need it. But the baggage we carry in our soul only rots up our lives like an old compost pile, leaving little room for new things.

My parents divorced when I was eight years old, and my dad moved to the other side of the world, at least that’s what it felt like. I was left with a hole in my heart, and was nobody’s princess. That rejection still impacts me today as I seek my self worth from other’s approval. Do you like me?

My high school basketball coach had an affair with a teammate of mine, leaving me with a lack of trust in the world and a fear others hurting my children today. Who can I trust anyway?

When I was a high school freshman, someone I thought was my friend played a practical joke on me, sending me a pink carnation from a fake “secret admirer,” egging all my friends on to play out the joke all day long. Will anyone ever truly love me for who I am?

Ouch, those scars still hurt; sometimes they even feel fresh and raw. And most of the time, I tuck them away inside. But sometimes, just like my purse, I sling them on my shoulder and carry them with me wherever I’m going.

I need to unload some of my baggage, leave my old scars behind, and make room for all the new blessings in my life. Stuff like friendships with other women, the love of my husband, the adoration of my children, and the hope I have found in Christ.

Sometimes you think you know somebody, have them all figured out - hook, line and sinker. That’s how I used to feel about myself. But since my journey this side of heaven looks like a long and winding road, I’d better pack light if I expect to make it home.

Be sure to visit www.womenoffaith.com, and www.trishberg.com.

Trish would love to hear from you at www.trishberg.com, or e-mail trishberg @ trishberg.com.

© Trish Berg, 2006-
Trish Berg is author to The Great American Supper Swap, and Rattled - Surviving Your Baby's First Year without Losing Your Cool! She has been a guest ABC World News Tonight, Midday Connection, and The Harvest Show.
She is an internationally known speaker for ministries such as MOPS, Hearts at Home, and in Australia on Parenting Seminars Online. She has written for Today's Christian Woman, MOMSense, CBN.com and P31 WOMAN.
For more information, check out www.TrishBerg.com

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