a true story about big feelings
Three Voices Said Calm Down
Three grown-ups tell her to calm down at once, and she just disappears into herself.
the realization
Three of us were telling her to stop the feeling, and she just went smaller with every word. She didn't need me to fix anything. She needed someone to sit down in it with her.
It happened fast. Three of us around her, all talking at once. Shhh. That's enough. Calm down. Grown-up voices stacked on top of a very small person.
have you ever felt this way too?
And she didn't calm down. She got smaller. Her face went behind her hands, and the rest of her went somewhere I couldn't reach. I was worn thin myself, so I said it too. Calm down. Like the words had ever once worked.
So I stopped. I didn't have anything left to fix with. I just sat down beside her on the floor, same wall at our backs, and stopped talking.
We sat there a while. Then, all wet-faced, she told me the real thing. My sock feels weird. I know, baby. I'm here. Her head tipped over and landed on my shoulder.
what I found myself saying
"I know, baby. I'm here."
"I stopped talking and just sat down next to her."
"Tell me. My sock feels weird? Okay. I've got you."
