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Feeling Your Feelings: A Heartfelt Story of Processing Emotions
- Jessicah Walker Herche, PhD, HSPP
- Jul 23, 2024
- 2 min read
Updated: Sep 18
There once was a young boy who couldn’t fall asleep because he missed Wilbur the pig and was certain Wilbur missed him, too. Tears streamed down his cheeks as his mother placed a hand over his heart and said softly, “You have much sadness.”
He turned on his side, hoping for sleep, but the tears came again. When his mother asked if he’d like to go to the playroom, he quickly nodded and slipped out of bed.
Snuggled beside her on the sofa, he began to talk about a song sung to Wilbur—something with the words goodbye for now. Though his mother didn’t know the tune, she offered to make one up. Relief brightened his face as he agreed.
She sang:
Oh Wilbur,
we love you
we miss you, dear friend.
Goodbye for now.
As her voice filled the room, the boy wept. Afterward, he chose a book, and they read together. When the story ended, he asked for the song again, and again he cried while she sang.
Later they walked hand in hand through the quiet neighborhood. He pointed out birds, pinecones, and stones. Remembering the kitty he’d lost months ago, he said, “She is in my heart, and your heart, and Daddy’s heart.”
“I think I am feeling better, Mommy,” he said at last.
“What do you think helped?” she asked.
“I think reading a book helped.”
She gently explained how feelings come to be felt and then pass, sometimes returning for another visit. Some feelings rest after a book; others ease when we move, which is why a walk can help emotions find their way through the body. She told him how proud she was of his courage to feel so deeply.
By the time they returned home, he still missed Wilbur but was ready for bed. He drifted into a deep, peaceful sleep.
The next morning, he woke smiling, humming the song his mother had created:
Oh Wilbur,
we love you
we miss you, dear friend.
Goodbye for now.
May we all feel our feelings without fear.
May we all be held as we honor the depth and breadth of human emotion.
May wisdom and compassion guide us as we journey through the landscapes of the heart.
Ready to give your emotions the same care this story celebrates? Connect with our women’s therapy team to begin a supportive, restorative process. Start here.
