"I just wanted to check in with you to thank you again for the weekend last September. You mentioned that you'd notice a pattern of healing for the entire family after a sibling attends a retreat. Well since the retreat, it initially seemed that progress for the healing of my family was going backwards. I was dealing with a lot of anger, unforgiveness (on my part), and broken relationships. But since then (the retreat), I've gotten much closer with my siblings, and am reminded of just who God created me to be.
There is this weird atmosphere of guilt and shame that binds the whole family in this wordless misery, and makes the children so anxious to stay close to their parents, even by adopting their misery (which definitely happened in my family - it was almost like I felt too guilty to be happy because my parents were so unhappy). There is an unspoken sense that the children exist to serve the parents and compensate for their missing siblings and all the sacrifices the parents made for them.
Identifying this in my own family has been extremely healing for me - I'm sharing these insights with my siblings and they are finding them mind-blowing as well. I do believe that the Holy Spirit is leading this healing journey and these insights are a continuation of the siblings retreat."
