Our bodies hold the keys to our past. While recently talking to a friend I was trying (& miserably failing) to delicately explain some of my medical complexities to him. I came right out and said “I have a pacemaker” because honestly, sometimes it’s just the easiest thing to do. Its pretty hard to see if I have a sweater on, or even a thick shirt, but because I’ve lost a few pounds in recent months & you can all but see the outline of the battery box through the skin in my chest if I wear a tank top or a scoop neck top. There are three slash mark scars on the left side of my chest & one on the right from where I briefly had a pacemaker placed and removed about two years ago.

    Surprisingly, (& pleasantly so), the first thing he asked me was not, “why do you have a pacemaker?” but instead, “do you have any cool scars?” It immediately made me laugh & put me at ease. I then told him, “yeah, of course” & showed him the 3 marks right below my left collarbone and told him that my standard story to explain the scars to most strangers was that “I got in a knife fight” (very “West Side Story”) & that “you should see the other guy!” We both had a good laugh & my general “badassery” became a popular topic of conversation for the rest of the night. 

    See scars can be like a map to who you are & where you’ve been. They help tell your story in a way nothing else can. My Aunt Becky is a breast cancer survivor who underwent a double mastectomy. She told me “scars are tattoos but with better stories.” She’s a true warrior with battle scars to mark the journey she’s been on, but she’s an even stronger woman for it. And my Uncle Scott couldn’t think she is any more beautiful today than the day he met her…scars & all. 

    My brother has a scar on his nose. I don’t think he likes it very much, but I’ve always appreciated it because of what it symbolizes. How as a tiny baby, doctors were able to save his precious little life leaving him with nothing more than that small scar on his nose as evidence. And what a blessing that is. 

    See scars tell a story, they have a message. They say, “this is what happened a long time ago. You & I, body…we went through that together.” Some are small & rather trivial & others, large and deeply expressive. But they’re all part of the beautiful picture that makes up your story. And that is truly, “GOOD STUFF”.