Overheard Today
From a conversation I now lean on
Think about how important detachment is. After all, if you went through the same emotional difficulty your friend goes through if you lived their life and your own, you could never be of any help to them.
And then know that when you are a parent, you are always less detached than you want to be, can be, probably should be.
So maybe think of your relationships as a kind of fire escape. You are there, on the side of someone’s building, steady and safe even if, sometimes, it is a little perilous for anyone to climb down or you to remain as sturdy you might like.
And maybe knowing everything is a little rickety, but still of use, is how you find inner equanimity.
Or maybe it is by giving things that don’t leave you in any kind of debt, like letting someone use your unlimited travel card on the metro.
Remembering too that giving invariably leads to more giving.