As a parent of two boys, I know how hard it can feel when our children seem lost and far away, in their own worlds, unable to connect.
When my youngest was going through a tough time last year, I felt helpless. He didn't want to talk to me or to his brother, and was angry and confused.
One night I found a picture he had drawn the previous summer.
As I looked at this little sketch I remembered how he'd been more excited about Life then, and was interested in the stars. He'd bought himself a telescope, and was loving his art, but it had been such a long time now since he'd drawn anything. All his art materials were under his bed, and he hadn't touched them for ages.
The character he'd drawn then was called MU, and as I looked at this sketch, and felt so sad, I wondered with all my Heart how I could connect with my beautiful boy again, in a way he could accept.
I knew he had to go through whatever he was experiencing in his own way, and I just wanted him to know I was there, to reach him in some small, gentle way.
i went for a walk through the fields near our home, and sat underneath the Oak Tree, a place where it's easy for me to drop into my Heart. Suddenly, the character my son had drawn came into my mind, and the first lines of a poem popped in too.
I walked home, and that night, I wrote those first lines down on a piece of paper, folded the paper into a star shape, and posted it underneath my son's bedroom door.
This continued every evening. Nothing was said in the first week or so, then suddenly, as I went to bed one night, my boy called out, the first time he'd said anything in ten days, 'I'm liking the poem, Mum...'
This went on until the poem was complete, and I printed it out to form a book with space for my lovely boy, the artist, to add his illustrations.
Now, this wasn't the day when suddenly everything was alright again - that journey is still unfolding - but it was a start, a step across a little bridge that was forming for him to cross when he was ready.
It was a gift to me too, as I experienced very clearly what it was to create from a place born of pure Love, with no expectations; to make something for no other reason than to show Love to my boy through something I could create.
We do this as parents every time we make a meal for our children, or run a bath for them, or simply hold in our Hearts the knowing that our children - the wonderful, creative, powerful beings that they are - are so much more than we know.
And all we can really do is to Love them - not needing them to change for our sake, or wanting them to be different - but simply showing up for them as a loving presence, there to witness, listen, and simply hold space for them to grow.
It's not always easy, is it?!
Our children are our teachers, inviting us to grow too, and in the more challenging times, they offer us an invitation to drop into the centred place within us again and again, so we can respond to anything that comes up with more flexibility and balance, and as calmly as we can.
This is what it is to Live from the place of the Heart, and this path is one I have been exploring since I was a child, when I too felt so confused and lost, in the strange place I had seemed to have landed.
I've been following the direction of my Inner Joy-PS since then - the guidance system that translates for me the always impeccable communication from my Truest Essence, from my Heart - knowing that when I do, I'm always led back Home, where some sort of peace can be found, and where answers to the biggest-seeming problems lie waiting.
This is a practice, a journey that lasts a lifetime, and it unfolds simply one breath, one choice, one moment at a time.
I wondered what gift I could offer to you - from one loving parent to another, from one Human Being to another - and yesterday it was clear to me that you might understand this story, and that you and your family might enjoy the poem Lucy and MU: The Adventure Begins... that was created from our family's experience. You can download the audio and a PDF below - and maybe your child would like to create their own images inspired by the story, or you might feel inspired to write music, or a film might emerge...Let me know what happens when your magic gets swirled up with ours!
And so here's to true creations from the Heart, and to connection, to knowing that we're all here for one another. Thank You for being there, of giving me the opportunity to share something I care deeply about with you and your family.
I appreciate You.
Thank You for showing up in your life for yourself and the children in your life - whether you're a parent, a teacher, an auntie, or a friend - in your own uniquely beautiful way.
We really are in this together.
Corinne x
To download the MP3, click here...InJoy!