Pull them out, but they still leave a scar...it reminds me of the icon of Mary with the swords through her heart. I don't know a lot about that particular one, but it definitely speaks to me. The longing, the constant ache, the knowing that we were made for so much more than this pain that is ever present. Funny the way life has ways of separating us from these "normal" things. I've always felt like I didn't fit in, but that's maybe because I love things that no one else around me loved, like opera, Shakespeare, and art movies. I have tried to fit in a little here and there, but who I am truly suffers when I do. Like the thought of not going to church anymore. Nope. Can't pull that off! Love you!