HEALING OURSELVES AND THE EARTH WITH PATCH
When I was a small child there was nothing more instantaneously comforting than a novelty bandage. In my Grandmother’s house there was a small tin of plasters with various animals and characters on them. I remember the first time I fell in the yard and saw the oozing of blood rush up from the wound, fresh and full of life. Almost as fast, my Nana reached out to clean the battle scar and then she gently applied a plaster with some tiny animals on them. All the world was right again.
Healing, I would learn, takes time and patience. Even when surface wounds are covered there is a deeper process within ourselves that is ever changing and growing. This growth varies from day to day and is met with different challenges throughout our lives. Yet, there is something so simple and inspiring in how children respond to struggles, in how they can accept things for what they are and learn to get back out there, continue on and play with a fresh heart.
My own healing process has not been linear and upon reflection I now understand that every step of the journey, grazes and all have brought me to where I am. Learning, growing and starting again are such privileges to have. Every single day brings with it the chance to transform, to rest and to simply be. Revisiting that childhood feeling of resilience, I have learned to embrace when I fall down, and to sit with it, to take it for what it is and to move forward at my own pace with an open mind to the possibilities around me.
It took time to get there, and not every day is as smooth as the rest but one of the greatest lessons I’ve learned and held onto since I was small is that it is okay to ask for help, to cry and to be vulnerable. How would my Grandmother had known that I had fallen if I hadn’t called out for her? Salty tears on my cheeks are delicately soaked up by love. There is always someone ready to help you back up, and often when we look closer at the times we struggled we will remember those who came to our aid, animal bandages, hugs and a smile that says, ‘ you can start again’.
Thank you so much to Patch for collaborating with me on this post. Patch bandages are 100% vegan, sustainable, hypoallergenic, compostable and biodegradable. Patch is a B Corp certified brand meaning they are businesses that ‘meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose’ (https://bcorporation.net/). The earth needs to heal as much as we do, right now more than ever we must protect our planet – so when we’re covering our scratches and wounds it’s important to use products that are planet friendly too.
For more info on Patch bandages you can browse their website here: https://patchstrips.com/
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