DEAR BONNIE: It feels like the Universe has something against me sometimes. I know that everything happens for a reason but geez this lesson I am going through is a tough one. Please help. Thanks, Randy

DEAR RANDY: Sometimes nature explains life better than words can. A plant does not grow from sunshine alone. It needs rain too. It needs the bright days and the hard ones. And somehow with both something small and hidden begins to grow.

I think our souls are a lot like that. We grow through joy through love through laughter and through the people who make life feel lighter. But we also grow through pain through waiting through loss and through the moments when we are not sure how we are going to keep going.

And maybe that is what makes the soul grow — not just the easy days but all of it.

The sunshine in life is beautiful. It reminds us that we are loved, that God is near and that there is still goodness around us. But the rain has its own purpose too. The hard seasons may not feel like a blessing when we are in them but they can make our hearts softer. They can teach us patience. They can help us understand other people’s pain in a deeper way. Sometimes the rain is what helps our roots grow stronger.

That does not mean pain is easy or that we have to pretend everything is okay. Sometimes life is heavy. Sometimes all we can do is take the next breath and ask God to help us through the next moment. And I believe that is enough.

We also grow when we let people in. We were never meant to carry everything alone. A kind word, a listening ear, a prayer or a friend who stays close can remind us that we are not forgotten. Sometimes God’s love reaches us through the people who sit beside us when we are hurting.

The soul needs quiet too. Not every answer comes right away. Sometimes we have to be still long enough to hear the gentle whisper inside us. Prayer silence and even a few honest tears can become sacred places where healing begins.

And as we heal we begin to help others heal, too. The love we have received becomes love we can give. The comfort that carried us becomes comfort we can offer someone else. In that way our struggles do not have the final word. Love does.

So if you are in a rainy season I hope you remember this: you are still growing. Even here. Even now. God has not left you. The storm will not last forever and one day when the sun comes out again you may see that something beautiful was being formed in you all along.

Bonnie Page is a spiritual medium, life coach, and Reiki Master. To learn more, please visit her website at www.bonniepagemedium.com. To submit a question for Bonnie’s column, please email bonnie@bonniepagemedium.com.