40 HOOK
One morning stands out clearly—
everyone was rushing and shoes were
missing. One child was crying, another
already overs2mulated before breakfast
was finished. I felt my own body 2ghten-
ing, my breath becoming shallow but in-
stead of pushing harder, I stopped. I
placed one hand on my heart and play-
fully invited them to place their hands on
theirs. We took three slow breaths to-
gether right there in the kitchen. The
shi# wasn't drama2c, but it was enough.
Shoulders so#ened. Tears slowed. We
met each other again before heading out
the door.
Over 2me, through both paren2ng and
teaching, I began to no2ce pa3erns of
restless energy, sudden emo2ons, mo-
ments of overwhelm that seemed to ar-
rive without warning. I came to
understand that our nervous systems are
always moving between ac2va2on and
rest, and our bodies are constantly com-
munica2ng. They ask for movement,
Drawing by Alexandra Wortendyke
