I know a little about my old pal Stephen. But mostly from the stories told when I was old enough to remember.
Stephen was born into sickness on July 6, 1946. A father who came home from war. A mother who struggled as a single mom. She was sick from growing up during the Great Depression too…
We were all proud to serve America. Navy Brats we were…
WWII was a terribly stressful time in America following WWII. Thousands of families served and suffered too…
Pain and profoundly dysfunctional family dynamics became normalized. Children inhaled the pain of war too. Lingering emotional damage was not understood back then, though…
Sickness often prevailed too. Polio struck Stephen as a 2 year old. He spent 6 weeks in the hospital, without loved ones close by to cheer…
We did not know then what we know today. We did not know how to help each other then when life was so overwhelmed with pain… Most souls survived with strong bodies and hearts.
The demons would hold the little souls hostage until much later. In those later years the haunting demons would return with emboldened rage…
Stephen survived too. But he didn’t know he was injured then. It would be decades later when the demons returned to haunt his mind…
Stephen did not know love as a child. He would not know how to love until decades later… The demons of hate steal love if you let them, you know…
Talking to my inner child… https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/inner-child-healing
I was asked not long ago by a friend, “How do you talk to your inner child?”
After many months of ‘Trauma Informed’ clinical therapy, learning how to talk to my old pal Stephen was a gift of healing for me…
Too many years growing up with no love or peace in my home. And, a series of too many traumatic events as an adult, hijacked my soul, I believe…
How did I help myself and Stephen at the same time? How did talking to my inner child help me heal?
Stephen seems to enjoy visiting me at the worst moments. I don’t want to talk about his stuff in those trying moments of despair…
Stephen keeps me awake in those moments when a warm embrace is needed the most. He triggers me to feel shame and guilt.
Sleeping doesn’t come at first when my mind is focused on Stephen. He needs someone to talk about his pain…
Sometimes I can’t talk to Stephen. So I ask him if we can talk later. With love, kindness and a hug, my old friend let’s me go to sleep.
Stephen shows up in anxious moments. He is angry in these moments. I ask him to give me space. Anger is no longer part of my soul…
Stephen is angry about his stuff. He wants me to reinforce his anger at others who hurt him.
I hug the little guy and we talk about stuff. Stephen knows he has a friend in me, a friend he never had before.
So, we hug each other and reassure each other. “It’s gonna be okay Stephen.” I always say to him with a kind smile and a warm hug.
Talking to my inner child gives me space to live in the moment. The pain of the past must end its haunting presence in everything good and joyful in the moment…
There is no joy in life when the past is breathing heavily on my back. There is no joy for the loved ones in my life when he is speaking to me, breathing down my back.
Talking to my inner child helps me to separate from him. We are friends now. He is not mad at me now, not ever again.
We are friends now, Stephen and me…
There is no peace of mind when my inner child is angry. Stephen, feels safe now. He is no longer alone with his pain without a caring soul near his side…
With a kind and warm embrace, we go separate ways. He visits me now and then as a friend. We talk and help each other as friends, Stephen and me…
We are never alone now. We have each other as friends near. We heal our souls together…
We have peace of mind now, Stephen and me…
Mindfulness Meditation Moments from Little Whale Cove, Oregon…