There I was sitting across from my son getting ready to be as vulnerable as possible, not truly knowing how he would receive my heart. And so, I leaped!
I was nervous, but I needed him to know of my inner sorrow so that I could heal our brokenness. And then it happened…healing and wholeness.
We made a commitment to each other. A mandatory daily hug. Something as simple as a hug, intentional, and willing. You see the last time we approached each other, it wasn’t in love, but in violence. Healing comes with touch, and touch can be as simple as a hug.
Every day since that talk, we have hugged, intentionally, and with purpose.
I was reminded of the Rabbi who told me to “hold him, and he will be healed.” My “aha” moment came when I realized I had stopped holding him. “He’s too grown they said. He’s a man now. You must let him go. He needs to man up”. Yet all he still needed was to be held. So! Our challenge is not to let a day go by without a hug. Without the physical contact of holding each other, letting each other know that we see, feel, and love each other.
I didn’t come to this realization lightly. It took a lot of self-reflection on my part. My fear of rejection created a wall around myself that even protected me from my own children! Thankfully I was still enough to hear the voice of God say to me…
I see you and you belong to me!
Healing comes in unimaginable ways, and for that, I am forever thankful! God’s plans are always so much greater and way better than our own. So I live my life with an open heart and mind, allowing for love to live there each moment of the day.
Who in your life needs a hug? Will you allow yourself to be hugged?
Lesson:
Let your heart heal and allow yourself to be hugged.
-Annette Ortiz Mata