I was saddened by this message from Beyond Blue reader Bambi on the message board of “Blanche’s 12 Bipolar, Alcoholic Days of Christmas”:

I am extreamly sad. I have a family I live with. I’m 51, my mother is 69, my son is 29, and my granddaughter is 5. We all live under one pain-filled roof. I awoke this morning to uncontroling sobbing. The reason why is that although we all have a roof over our heads, plenty of food, clothes, cars, and jobs, our family is so unhappy. There is so much pain that we’ve all gone through in the past, which is controlling our every waking moment. Pain that has not been dealt with from a long life of suffering that has been passed down from generation to generation.

I’m writing this as my family knows I’ve been crying all morning and praying to the Lord for a miracle, but no one seems to care enough to ask what’s wrong. We are in need of help from above. We so desperately need healing and don’t know how to go about it and keep adding insult to injury. One pain on top of another. This is the season when I would love nothing better then to be celebrating the birth of our Lord and being grateful for all He has done for us, but I find myself in a state of depression as I do every Christmas. If I mention anything about God my son quickly reprimands me. My mother does not believe in God. Please pray for my family … to let them see there is more to this life than pain and suffering, at least for one Christmas.? Thank you all and God bless?.

Sometimes I think it’s best to draw from the wisdom of my readers. I absolutely loved this insight from reader Zana on the message board of my “Dear God: On Regaining Innocence” post:

On a day when I was not hiding my tears well, my daughter (who also has depression/bi-polar), looked at me and said, “Mom, your happy childhood were your aces. While right now you’er getting the 2’s and 3’s, remember the face cards are still coming.”

I so hope that’s true for you, Bambi. Please know that you and your family are in my prayers (and I’d venture to say in the prayers of a few other Beyond Blue readers) this Christmas. I do hope it is one of peace, love, and/or joy for you.