You Never Know What Someone Else Is Carrying

Today reminded me of something I hope I never forget.

This week has been one of the most emotional weeks of my life.

As July 11 approaches—the second heavenly birthday of our daughter, Ella Gloria Jean Patrick—I’ve been doing everything I can to protect my heart.

I’ve made a conscious decision to stay positive.

To take this week one moment at a time.

To lean on my faith.

To lean on Bernard.

To hold tightly to every prayer, every message, every text, every email, and every word of encouragement so many of you have shared with me.

Your love has carried me more than you know.

When I woke up this morning, I told myself, Today is going to be a good day.

I was going to go to work.

Go home.

Finish preparing for Ella’s birthday cookout.

Finish getting ready for the release of Hello, Ella Gloria Jean—the book Bernard and I wrote to introduce our daughter to the world.

I felt ready.

Less than two hours after I got to work, a manager, frustrated over something someone else had done, took it out on me.

He spoke to me in a way that was hurtful and disrespectful.

It broke me.

Everything I had worked so hard to hold together all week…

Everything I had fought to keep from spilling over…

The floodgates opened.

As I sat in my car afterward, one question kept running through my mind.

Why today?

Why the day before one of the most important days of my life?

Why the day before I celebrate my daughter?

Why the day before Bernard and I introduce her to the world through the letters we wrote just for her?

This morning, I encouraged all of us to choose kindness.

By lunchtime, I was the one who needed someone else to choose it for me.

For a while, that’s all I could think about.

But after I had time to breathe, pray, and reflect, I realized something.

That manager had no idea what I was carrying.

He didn’t know what this week means to me.

He didn’t know what tomorrow represents.

He didn’t know my heart was already holding more than it could bear.

He simply saw someone who came to work.

And that’s when it hit me.

How many times have we all crossed paths with someone whose smile hid a broken heart?

How many people quietly carry grief…

Anxiety…

Fear…

Loss…

A difficult diagnosis…

Financial stress…

A struggling marriage…

Or burdens they never speak about?

We see people.

But we don’t always see what they’re carrying.

That’s why kindness matters.

Patience matters.

Grace matters.

The way we speak to one another matters.

Not because people are fragile.

But because we never know what someone else may already be fighting.

This experience also reminded me why I’m willing to keep sharing my story.

Because that’s the beautiful thing about sharing our stories.

When one person has the courage to open their heart, it often gives someone else permission to open theirs.

I’ve experienced that over and over again this week.

So many of you have shared your own stories of loss, grief, and healing with me.

You’ve reminded me that while our stories are different, our hearts often understand one another in ways words cannot explain.

That’s a gift.

As I prepare to celebrate Ella tomorrow, I’m choosing not to let one painful moment define this week.

Instead, I’m choosing to remember what this week has also been filled with.

Love.

Prayer.

Encouragement.

Compassion.

And people who have chosen to walk beside Bernard and me during one of the hardest weeks of our year.

If there’s one thing I hope you take away from my experience, it’s this:

Be kind.

Not because it’s easy.

Not because people always deserve it.

But because you never know what someone else is carrying.

Tomorrow, we’ll celebrate Ella’s life.

We’ll remember her.

We’ll honor her.

We’ll love her just as deeply as we always have.

And tomorrow, through Hello, Ella Gloria Jean, the world will finally get to meet the little girl who changed our lives forever.

Thank you for continuing to walk this journey with us.

It means more than you’ll ever know.

💗