I’m sharing a video of my daughter singing “The Girl I Mean to Be” from The Secret Garden for several reasons. First, of course, is being proud as can be of her. She sang this for an audition in Ohio last week and knocked ’em dead.
More than that, though, is that this song speaks so powerfully to the little girl I once was.
Several years ago I lived next to a woman who was rather eccentric. She lived alone, and had an elaborate web of chains and padlocks rigged from her porch posts to her front door. One day, as I was getting into my car with my daughter, the woman approached us and, unprompted, launched into a story.
“Someone broke into my house,” she said.
My daughter leaned forward, listening intently, and I cringed. She was only 3 years old at the time and I didn’t want her to have nightmares.
If you had told me 15 years ago, before I had kids, that feeding them a balanced diet would be my biggest challenge, I would not have believed it. Sibling rivalry? Too much TV? Bad grades? I was prepared for all of that. But seeing a lone stalk of broccoli or stray leaf of spinach with the power to send kids screaming, nearly igniting World War 3, has had me waving the white flag. I finally realized that the focus had to be on empowering my kids; it was time for the command to change hands.
In my house we talk often about the power of our hands. As an energy medicine practitioner, I encourage my kids to tune into the energy of their food, their thoughts, and their bodies. I want them to experience the subtle shifts that can be detected by the palms as a result of simply “activating” them through intention.
Recently I went to hear Don Jose Ruiz, the author of The Fifth Agreement, speak to a group of teens. He told stories about his own troubled adolescence and what it was like growing up as the son of best-selling spiritual author, Don Miguel Ruiz. He talked about his father making him stay home one night when his friends when out, and what it felt like to hear that their car had crashed and his best friend was killed. He talked about trying to take his own life with a knife.
My friend Rex got this sweet little puppy for his 10th birthday. His reaction? He put one hand on his heart, one hand on his solar plexus, and exclaimed in delight. This speaks so powerfully to the source of our joy, and I love that children instinctively honor this in their bodies and their energy. In December I will be focusing on children — what we can teach them about intuition, self-esteem, self-care, and loving kindness, and, maybe more importantly, what they can teach us!
👉 Enjoy dedicated writing space just steps from Lake Michigan
👉 Benefit from one-on-one developmental editing sessions