Let’s keep the children
safe and warm
cuddled close
and free from harm
No, but what monster
hides underneath the bed
let’s find and name
the monsters all instead
we are wired not for safety
but for truth
don’t hide grief and fear
from the youth
a child survives by attunement to
your heart
they listen deeply from
their start
long before they understand
your words
they sense the world’s
monsters as a herd
a disney childhood is
a lie
the heartfelt child
wonders why
name your sorrows and
your pain
then your child will know
they have a name
no monsters hide beneath
my childrens’ bed
they know I hold them
close and dear instead
also published on everything2.com
Yes, Disney is a lie. One of my biggest bitches. I also learned with a child who had night terrors that if you give them names they lose some of their power. Not always, but sometimes.
…well, and the reality is that there IS scary stuff in the world. Kids KNOW that. So if we admit our fears it models to the kids that fear is normal, tolerable, and courage is doing things anyhow with appropriate judgement of risks.
Yes! Take away the fear of the unknown by naming the fear. Terrific and true.
thank you….
“Disney childhood is a lie” that’s why the little ones are terrified so often when they first see the characters in real life. Most astute!
Thank you…
Beautiful!
awww, thank you. Poor monsters, they are scared too.
Yes they are…that is what the little sister says some time. What imagination and seeing the good in all.