I've got this colleague at work with who I had the chance to speak one time.
It was a sudden and random moment. I was on my lunch break and I just usually stays at my station to eat my food.
It just so happens that we had the same lunch schedule at that time. I am a newbie to the team so I was just in the middle of adjusting to my environment primarily with the people as well.
The thing is that I am an introvert so it is a constant struggle for me to communicate solely with a person. I was never a person who opens up a conversation. It takes guts and energy for me to do so.
At that moment, I could not quite recall what prompted it but we connected instantly. I was so comfortable speaking with her. It was a surprise!
My circle knows me as more of a listener rather than a talker. So yes, throughout the conversation, I intently listen to everything she shared. And I was a little taken aback when, in less than an hour, she began to share some of her life narrative with me.
She has had a relationship for about 6 or 8 years. She has devoted her life to that particular person. Sadly, her partner was addicted to a substance. He was an addict.
She said that his vices were greater than the love that they had to save the relationship.
She tried. She tried multiple times to understand him. To help him get on his feet. She swallowed her pride and sacrificed everything to be with him despite everything, but she failed. She gave up. She left.
After they separated, someone called to inform her that he was sick and then he did not survive.
She told me that she has "what if's" about their relationship. What if she fought? What if she did not give up? What if she stayed? Partly, she blames herself for what has happened. She said she should have not left him because of the situation, despite the situation. She loved him but she was too tired to stay.
The relationship was so toxic that it affected her mental and physical state. It does show her condition right now but that's another story.
While she was sharing that story with me, I could not help but cry. I was sobbing and then I got to reflect as well on my end. I share the same sentiment about having someone close to you that has an addiction.
She advised me to never give up on that person. Most especially if you love that person. Yes, we do have times when we struggle because of stress and pressure.
We are human beings so we are entitled to feel it but never give up because you'll never know the repercussions of it.
Hang on tight and have faith. It may be hard but once you'll lose that person, you'll never have the chance to undo your choices.
I was very grateful to her for allowing me to enter that tragic and painful world of hers. I am in awe of her strength and courage to have faced and surpassed such adversities. Her story was so powerful and it has moved me.
I've got too much to say and a lot to tell but it's her story, and I know she's the more fit person to tell it all. But I hope I did justice in sharing it. I have not asked her consent in writing this that's why I left some words unsaid.
I hope she got to see and feel the impact of it on me. And I know the world deserves to hear her story to be inspired. She's a WARRIOR. She's a SURVIVOR.
