“Compassion is the feeling of shared suffering. When you feel someone else’s suffering, there is the birth of understanding.” — Deepak Chopra

GOODBYE MR. SQUASH...

A few months ago my partner purchased himself a squash racket. It has taken residence in our front hallway and has been a restricted tease to my 8 year old son Jude ever since. Dave is away for the weekend so naturally, when the cat is away… the mouse comes to mommy to try his luck at getting a “yes” in response to the “please may I play with it question. Lol!

Well, yesterday he was in luck and I did in fact say yes, but on condition that he did not use the actual squash ball, but something a little bit softer – I don’t need to be paying for any broken windows. Haha!

Very enthusiastically, Jude returned with a little rubber “air ball” about the same size as a squash ball but with the print of a soccer ball on it and a cute little emoji style face.

Jude and I played “squash” together for hours on end – and by played together, I mean I threw, he hit. Supper time eventually rolled around and we did a countdown of the last ten throws before it was time to come inside. After we had done the last throw, Jude begged me for just one more throw, and I agreed.

Well, if there was ever a time when I wish I had stuck to my guns, it was this one!

I threw and he hit – and boy did he hit… the ball flew straight up and over the roof – gone!

Well, I was not in any way prepared for the meltdown that followed. He was in complete denial that his ball could possibly be gone forever! I did my best to console him and even said that I would take him the following day to get a new one – to which he shouted

“It won’t be the same! David gave me that ball and he has had it since he was little!”

I realised very quickly just how important this was to my little man, as he ran inside crying and when I asked where he was going… he said he was going to go draw a picture of his “gone forever ball”. My heart just broke when I heard him say that! And off he went…

He sat at his desk, sobbing endlessly as he drew “the picture”.

Once completed he proceeded to stick it on his wall and then insisted that I phone David so that he could tell him what had happened and I was also to send him a photo of the drawing.

It really was a very emotional moment for a very precious and sensitive little soul!

Sadly, we have no "photographic evidence" of Mr. Squash's time n our lives, but Jude's drawing definitely depicts just how much he was loved and will be missed... Meet "Mr. Squash"...

After bath time and supper time, he had calmed down and mom stuck a movie on for him in the aid of lengthy distraction from his current state of emotion.

These little moments may seem so trivial to us as adults, but they aren’t – and as parents we should really try not to disregard the emotional processing of our little ones. In fact, this principle is applicable not only to kids, but to everyone!

Just because you don’t understand it or relate to it on an emotional level – it does not make it any less real to the one experiencing it.