Living to the Fullest: Can the Brokenhearted do it?

Note from Adrian: This is our next installment in the "Living to the Fullest" guest post series. Today's post is from Angela, a friend I've known for years and years.   Angela is a Romanian born, Kansan bred Christian, now residing in north Alabama as a 21 year old nursing major. She enjoys playing piano, and whenever writers block and business subsides, she writes a blog or two. You can follow her on her blog, on Facebook, or on Twitter.

(Want to write a guest post for Life Before the Bucket?)

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Recently, a relationship of mine ended, a family member passed away, and a few other closer relationships passed as well. The outward appearance of the brokenhearted can show all of the pain and depression, or it can show joy and happiness, even if you aren’t feeling it. 

Feeling down in the dumps after a recent break up can really get to you. Really, any traumatic experience to the heart can leave you feeling lonely and depressed. With all of the above happening in such a short amount of time, it’s been pretty rough on my heart. When I don’t think my heart can be shattered anymore, along comes another hammer to break it into even tinier pieces. I know you know what I’m feeling if you’ve ever lost someone close to you or had a close friendship dissipate.

So, how can we live to the fullest when it feels like our entire world has shattered? It may sound redundant, but you pick up the pieces and you stand. You move forward. You press on. 

I read a poem a few years back. I know I put it in one of my journals a while back. The poem talked about a little kid and their toy. It was broken. No matter how long the child sat there trying to fix the broken toy, the toy still did not fix itself. It wasn’t until the kid picked up the pieces of the toy and handed it to his father that the toy was fixed. 

The same goes for our broken-heartedness. If we sit and mope around all day long, how will that help in living life to the fullest? It won’t. It would be doing the complete opposite. It would be living life to the least. Until you give your broken heartedness up to the Father and pick yourself up, the more down and out you will become.

Living to the fullest means getting out in the world. Interacting with people. Building new relationships. Growing closer to old friends. Taking a walk in the park. Or going running. Anything to take your mind off the stabbing pain in your heart. 

Only time will heal the wounds of the heart (another cliché - oops). For instance, I’ve taken up my art again. Started drawing my comic strip again. Opened a book that needed to be opened again. Spent time with my Savior. Anything to make me feel whole again. So, if you’re brokenhearted and downtrodden, ask yourself, “How will I get out of this pit I’m in and start living life to the fullest?”

Adrian may not remember this, but a while back, he posted on a blog (editor's note: it's from my Xanga - now that's a throwback) a poem entitled “Enjoy Life”. I’m guessing he wrote it, because I can’t imagine anyone else writing it but him. I wrote I down and printed it out. It has stuck with me for years and years. And, I offer it as encouragement now.

Get up early and watch the sunrise.

Enjoy Life

Sing louder than you’re supposed to. Even when people are around.

Enjoy Life

Make one of your parents breakfast without expecting anything in return. (Because the look on their face is worth it)

Enjoy Life

Visit someone elderly who needs someone to talk to. It will make their day. (And yours)

Enjoy Life

Eat at a fancy restaurant just because.

Enjoy Life

Go out to eat at McDonald's and enjoy every minute of it.

Enjoy Life

Hang out with your friends. Even if it’s just doing nothing.

Enjoy Life

Listen to loud music, and have a blast looking like an idiot while you’re doing it.

Enjoy Life

Dance, even if you don’t think you can, because chances are, someone around you can’t either.

Enjoy Life

Live with no regrets, and make the best of every moment. Life throws us curveballs, and sometimes they hit us square in the face. But even when that does happen, we need to just get up and smile even if it does hurt a little because it’s worth it.

This is the only today you’ll ever get. Right here, and right now. Make the best of it. Live life to the fullest, because Christ died just so we might be able to. Jesus came so that we might have life and have it to the FULL!

Enjoy life.

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Questions: Do you struggle to enjoy life when times get hard? What do you do that you enjoy that breaks your slump? How important is it for you to continue living to the fullest, even when times are difficult?

This guest post was part of a guest post series called "Living to the Fullest." Interested in joining in? I'm still looking for submissions! Just write up a post, or even just an idea, and e-mail it my way!