Blog
Thoughts, reflections, and letters for people at a crossroads in work and life.
Relax and Open Up
I feel the pressure on my chest.
It reminds me of when I was little, and my brother would sit on me, and I couldn't breathe.
Yesterday, within thirty minutes, I received calls from two family members about their health crises and upcoming surgeries. In that moment, two people I love needed me.
Two people I love.
Two people I will sit with and support.
My daughter's fear and my partner's quiet stoicism, I will be present with. I will go to the appointments, hold hands, make food, and keep my feelings numb as I do.
How to Be With Emotions (Without Fixing Them)
I used to run from my emotions like I was running from a house on fire.
Fast. Urgent. Wanting to escape.
Yet no matter how far or how fast I went, they were still there.
If anything, they grew louder, more present, and harder to ignore.
More insistent.
More present.
Harder to ignore.
Until I learned something different.
What’s Your Intention?
My son called the other day, his voice tight with frustration.
“They never wrote me back,” he said.
“Send me the email,” I told him.
When it landed in my inbox, I could see it. Polite words, thoughtful details, a closing line that sounded like a soft wave goodbye. But no arrow. No request that gave his boss something to respond to.
When I asked him what his intention was, he paused. “I didn’t want to sound pushy. I just…wanted them to respond.”