Day 14

Consider a child.
A small one. Eyes glassy. Lip trembling. Fists clenched.
Maybe they’re angry.
Maybe they’re sad.
Maybe they don’t even know what they’re feeling—only that it’s big.

They’re coming to you for support.

What do you do?

You don’t say, “Don’t cry” or “Don’t be upset.”
You don’t say, “Calm down.”

You don’t make a problem out of what they’re feeling or suggest it should be otherwise.

You slow down.
You soften.
You get low to the ground and ask:

“Would you like a hug?”
“No? That’s okay. Can I sit right here?”

And you sit.
Not to rescue them from their feelings—
but to accompany them through them.
A steady, unwavering presence.
Not fixing. Not solving. Not rushing.
Just being with.

Now consider this:

Every time someone you love gets overwhelmed—shuts down, lashes out, spirals out—
that child is present.

And when you are overwhelmed, reactive, afraid, offline?
That child is present in you, too.

So the next time someone is breaking down, breaking open, or breaking apart...
Treat them like the child they once were.

And the next time you are?

Do the same.

Sit with yourself.
Be with him.
Be with her.

This is what’s required.
Not clever words. Not logical solutions.
Just presence.

The mind will want to add more,
but presence is enough.

Presence is all that’s needed.

Presence and that which arises from it.