Post Secret

postcard.jpgWhat’s your secret? Is there something that gnaws away inside you that you wish you could share with someone?

I spotted this article from OC Register a few weeks back. It talks about how Frank Warren’s plan to create a unique art exhibit has turned into an international phenomenon.

In preparation for a local art show, Frank left 3,000 postcards in pizza parlors, bookstores and Washington, D.C., subways that read: “Send Frank a secret.”

Ha, ha. Art.

He got a few hundred replies, which he displayed at his booth. But the postcards kept coming – from places like China, Australia and Tupelo, Mississippi.

Their messages ranged from: I am secretly involved with my best friend’s wife. To: Everyone who knew me before 9-11 believes I’m dead.

Frank’s blog – PostSecret.com -continues to display the innermost secrets of all those who send him their postcards. If you plan on visiting the site you need to know that there are some very frank admissions with several being sexual in nature. Never the less, I think a visit to the site is worthwhile to get a better understanding of the hurts many people are carrying.

Here’s a sample of some of the most recent secrets.

If it hadn’t been for an unplanned pregnancy, my next attempt at ending life would have succeeded.

Tomorrow is my 24th birthday. It has taken that long for me to figure out who I am, and love myself. But I am finally getting there.

I’m obsessed with the fear that I will die while my husband is in Iraq and he’ll have no one to come home to.

I yelled at her for weeks about how wrong her abortion was and she still held my hand when I had one.

I pray over your package before I mail it to you. – eBay power seller.

Trick or Treat? I am haunted by the end of my first marriage and afraid this one is doomed too.

I strongly suspect that I use a lot more toilet paper than other people …. but I have no way of knowing.

I was one of those kids who always made fun of the ‘different’ kids. Now I teach the ‘different’ kids. My heart breaks every day. I’m so sorry for being a horrible person when I was younger. Eventually we grow up and realize we were wrong.

I secretly believe God lets people into Heaven based on how they treat animals.

After 38 years of using drugs I’m finally clean at the age of 50, and I’m so grateful.

My brother and sister make fun of me for not doing drugs.

My regular Wednesday morning guest on 98.5 Sonshine FM is Ross Clifford who is the Principal of Morling College in New South Wales and current President of the Baptist Union of Australia. Each week we chat about a range of issues relating to spirituality and belief.

We discussed the human need to confess our secrets during today’s segment and talked about what drives people to send their thoughts to Post Secret.

You can hear our conversations by clicking the play button on the audio player at the bottom of this post.

Would you send your secrets to Post Secret? Do have trusted friends with whom you can share your deep dark thoughts and secrets?

[audio:http://mpegmedia.sonshinefm.ws/feeds/MEN291008_1145.mp3]

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About the author

Rodney Olsen

Rodney is a husband, father, cyclist, blogger and podcaster from Perth Western Australia.

He previously worked in radio for about 25 years but these days he spends his time at Compassion Australia, working towards releasing children from poverty in Jesus' name.

The views he expresses here are his own.

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4 Comments

  • I wasn’t aware that the Post Secret project was still going on. I purchased the book several years ago-interesting to say the least. As for posting a secret? I wouldn’t do it just for the sake of having it on the site. I really don’t have “secrets” since I’m usually outspoken and if something is bothering me, I talk about it with a friend or family member. But, some people don’t have the strength and I see Post Secret as a way for others to get things “in the open,” and lift a little burden off their shoulders.

  • I couldn’t keep reading the post secret blog. I found it interesting, but too many of them were things that weren’t good for me to be reading.

    Just being honest.

  • I actually sent in a secret. It was something that happened kind of accidentally but I had my hand in it a bit too. So I wanted to get it off my chest without someone judging me. I did my peace with God, made the postcard and sent it. Yep it’s published. And no I won’t say which one is mine.

  • Too Shy to Stop writers Sam Harvey and Ariela Rose recently collaborated on an article about PostSecret. Writer Christine Barrett also submitted original photos of postcards from her classmates at Salem College. You can read the article here.
    Feel free to leave a comment on the article or take a look around Too Shy to Stop while you’re there! 🙂

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