I was not always painfully shy. Once I was a vivacious child who was the boss of all her friends. (I’ve always known exactly what I wanted and how I wanted it done.) That gregarious child asked questions and cared deeply for others. They didn’t know solitude or hunger or pain. They didn’t crave violence or humiliation or fear. They didn’t know what it was like to not be loved.
That light and breezy child was beaten down and hung up somewhere to dry and forgotten. Somewhere in the last 5 years, I decided I needed to let that child down- to free them. This idea, rediscovering my inner child, was married to the notion that I wanted others to feel seen. There’s this rule that I made and I’ve damn well stuck by it. If someone affects me somehow, I have to reach out and let them know. Too often we let connections like that be one sided. Too often I felt myself reaching out for help and connection only to be spurned.
So, what’s your story? It can be anything you feel like telling, but the story you choose will speak volumes as well. I promise that I genuinely want to know. I will see the words unspoken. We don’t have to be friends but I hope to know you. I hope to hear you. You who are aching for connection as well. Whose inner child was lost or taken.
