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We grow strong!

8/16/2012

16 Comments

 
We grow strong!
We grow strong when we go down deep into ourselves and find something that matters so much to us that we cannot walk away. We do not want to walk away. We choose not to walk away. 
We grow strong when we decide we may not know how to do something but we will put one foot in front of the other until the deed is done.
We grow strong when we face a seemingly insurmountable obstacle and we keep on going.
We grow strong when we speak our truth even if our words are unwelcome and people try to crush us and put us down.
I grew strong in my father's house. His word was law and disension was brutally quashed. 
I grew stronger when my first marriage ended and divorce Irish style took 9 years.
I grew stronger still when my daughter Hannah died. 
Many times I believed myself weak. 
Many times I wanted to give up. 
But my strength lay in my persistence.
I see that persistence all around me.
I see it in the  Dalit People of India.
I see it in Justice for Magdalenes 
Growing up, I saw it in Mandela and the anti-apartheid movement. 
And in the powerful words and deeds of Martin Luther King.
But being strong and courageous is not just the province of famous people, it dwells most especially in those among us whose names are unknown, the ones who live lives of quiet courage.  So if that's you,  I salute you now.
16 Comments
Jessica link
8/16/2012 11:28:23 am

Martine.. This is a great reminder for me today... This is one of my top3 values: strength... Its easy for me to see streng in others, and I am happy to report, that I have so many role models in my own family..

Sometimes I tend to forget how strong I am... I like to remind myself that "Strength is in my DNA"...

Love your blog post.
Thankyou

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Martine Brennan link
8/17/2012 03:34:49 am

That is so true for us all Jessica..we forget how strong we are. I am so glad you remembered how strong you are today. Don't you just love your DNA! Martine

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michelle
8/16/2012 02:09:08 pm

Oh Martine, I love this. Lately my soul has been calling me to "grow strong" and to step fully and deeply into the work I am meant to do. It requires facing fears and letting go of things that do not serve. It requires leaping and trusting that place that knows I will fly. Thank you for these words of inspiration.

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Martine Brennan link
8/17/2012 03:39:51 am

As I read your words Michelle, I remembered a quotation "Courage does not always roar, sometimes it is the quiet voice..." Your strength is so apparent right now in your willingness to move TODAY beyond the stories of the past. You have my sincere respect. Martine

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Kathleen Prophet link
8/16/2012 04:35:54 pm

Martine.... I am blown away by the resiliency of the human spirit, the indomitable force when all threatens to destroy it, beat it down, betray and abuse it, it rises from the ashes into a powerful ferocity of love that overcomes, seizes back control and thrives. I LOVE this piece! your proclamation of strength and persistence. I see it daily in the women and children I work with. I see it over my whole life. Such a paradox that abuse and adversity can evoke such transformation. Not always. Many are lost. Yet others including you and me fully become. Thank you for this piece!

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Martine Brennan link
8/17/2012 03:42:27 am

Kathleen, quite simply I am blown away by YOU! It is a joy to see you come into your own. Martine

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Nona link
8/16/2012 09:43:08 pm

Thank you, Martine for sharing your journey of strength and holding a light for others. Thank you for being who you are. Thank you for asking the right questions and for inspiring others to recognize their strength. The world needs this, now. Each of us, strong. XOXO

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Martine Brennan link
8/17/2012 03:50:07 am

Your words encourage me so Nona...and I picture a world where we are all strong, speaking our truth, finding our voice and changing everything one small piece at a time. Martine

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Amy Palko link
8/17/2012 02:28:37 am

Ah, the call of the warrior goddess! Strong and determined, fiercely compassionate and unwilling to allow her fear to diminish her light - whenever I see her embodied in this world, she takes my breath away and I stand in awe at her presence. In adversity or advocacy, she is truly awesome, is she not?

One of the examples that I've seen in my life recently includes my grandma as she battled back to full health following 2 strokes and 2 heart attacks in 2011. Last December she couldn't speak a word and only a few short months later she was able to communicate in full sentences. Now, the only evidence in her speech is some forgotten words that sit poised at the tip of her tongue and a faint lisp that she didn't have before. She was even given back her driving license last month, and my grandad has been holding space for her all along to come back to him, to come back to herself.

Watching this warrior goddess in the guise of my grandmother's body has been one of the most humbling and inspirational experiences of my life so far.

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Martine Brennan link
8/17/2012 03:45:31 am

Aw, our grannies! Where would we be without them? Thank you for sharing your Granny's courage, persistence and strength with us Amy. She is a wonderful role model for us all about what is possible when we do not give up! Martine

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Heather link
8/17/2012 07:46:12 am

I started growing strong at 4 years old and haven't stopped! Growing strong isn't an easy thing to do, but it feels good to look back and see how far I've come. I believe that from that strength blooms compassion and empathy, which is what the world really needs. Thanks so much for the blog post, Martine!

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Martine Brennan link
8/18/2012 07:21:59 am

We all need to look back to acknowledge the pain but it is vital that we acknowledge our strength too Heather. I am so glad you made it to today and the wonderful work you do. Martine

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Marie link
8/30/2012 01:21:16 am

Wonderful Martine! I am so moved by your words today. I am working on becoming stronger after many years of grief and loss broke me, and I try to keep the words of Ernest Hemingway to the forefront of my mind these days.. “The world breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong at the broken places.”

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Martine Brennan link
8/30/2012 08:12:24 am

Big soft hugs just for you Marie. Mx

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AnneMarie link
8/30/2012 05:43:25 pm

OK..continuing with that SYNC thing...
http://chemo-brain.blogspot.com/2012/08/ordinary-inner-child-celebration.html
You tell me there isn't some sort of energy going on around the globe with all of us!!!
WOW... I may have been "broken" but I'm resilient ......
xoxo

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Martine Brennan link
8/31/2012 05:51:03 pm

Anne Marie it is absolutely uncanny the way we have begun to tune into each other. Getting to know you all has enriched me. I am so glad I came along to the party. Martine x

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