-Why
are you so sad, honey?
-Oh mummy, I'm sad 'cause you and daddy
will die, and it makes me feel so awful... I'm gonna cry, that's SO sad. I
really like you, I don't want you to be dead.
-Well, NOW I'm alive, don't think about
that.
-Yeah, but you do will die. Everybody
dies, did you know that?
-I know but I'm not planning to die yet.
-Oh, so you don't know that dying is not
something you can plan? Zuzka's grandma didn't plan it, neither. And what? Now she
is dead, she's gone!
Yes... I can imagine it's very difficult to help children deal with such things.
ReplyDeleteA child has a long-term vision and feels that someday, their parents will leave them. I have an impression that in this dialogue, there is a longing for reassurance that their parents will be with them always.
It reminds me about a beautiful story of Jane Seymour about her relationship with her mother. One day Jane was inspired to paint two open hearts linked in a specific way. She believes it was her mother who had given her this idea. It was a matter of faith and trust as she was not given any scientific proof to believe in that. But Jane had a strong, intimate relationship with her mother who taught her how to live with an open heart.
Even after death of her mother, she interpreted a lot things as the proof of her presence.
Maybe that's a way to reassure children when they are afraid of death of their parents and see that there is something beyond that overwhelm them. To comfort them that somehow, they could contact with ourselves always.