A public confession: I wish this series were done. The deep ache that rejection causes is painful enough to feel. Writing about it just pulls back another layer of denial that I'd rather keep on.
Rejection
This has been a bad week. A bad summer (except for the 2 weeks I was on vacation). A soul-forging experience.
This is where my blood begins to boil. My shoulders pull up to my ears and my head begins to throb numbly. Breathing becomes less natural and more forced.
A tiny me is throwing a tantrum inside my brain. I can feel the tiny fists punching the walls of my brain tissue raging at the unfairness of it all. Soul-forging?! Tiny me is screaming. I've invested my share! Now give me the profits!
(Funny sidenote: Shakespeare didn't believe that the soul was in the heart. He believed that it was in the mind).
Twenty-One Hundred Fifty Degrees of Rejection
According to blacksmithcode.com, 2150 degrees Fahrenheit is the lowest temperature at which a welder can forge steel. THE LOWEST. Now, I'm going to ask you a very personal question: Does 2150 degrees do justice to the pain you feel?
Wrought-Iron Rejection
I forgot to mention at what temperature iron is forged. This number may do you justice.
"The best temperature iron must reach to forge is between 2400-2600 degrees Fahrenheit." - (blacksmithcode.com)
"As Iron Sharpens Iron..."
You know as well as I do that the heat of soul-forging is more compatible with the heat of iron-forging. Another thing about iron-forging that emphasizes its compatibility is that the welder has to sharpen iron with iron in order to weld it into the desired shape. Just like our souls conflict with other souls for our own maturing and growth. Which leads me to my Scriptural synopsis.
(seriously- why am I not a theology major???)
"Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend." - Proverbs 27:17 KJV
The keyword here is "countenance." This noun is not included in most other translations of this verse. Yet it is the missing piece in the puzzle titled "I Have Closure From Rejection!"
Countenance comes from the Greek word "paneh." Paneh means something along the lines of "turning of the face."
Are you on the same high I am right now?! It's all clicking readers!!!
Turning of the face. The classic action of rejection. Paneh.
If you thought this couldn't get any better, do 5 jumping jacks right now. It's about to get way crazier.
The pronunciation for Paneh is "pey-nun-heh." Pey nun heh. Pain un heh. Paiinnheh.
The Purely Pastiche Translation
Now, here's Proverbs 27:17 PPT (Purely Pastiche Translation):
Iron sharpens iron; so a person supports their friend in rejection.
So there you have it, my friends. A cure to the stings of painful rejection is the support of friends. I bet a shrink could've told you this in less than 5 seconds. But it would've cost you some deductible. Their advice definitely would not have been as thorough. Nor as grammatically, historically, linguistically, and biblically substantiated as this was.
I hope this brought you some peace of mind. Or, in the very least, some nerdy grammar joy.
All the Peace,
AK.