Today, my 4 year old toddler stumped me with a question.
Whilst I generally pride myself in being a quick thinker and do particularly well on my toes, when he asked me what “trust” means — I didn’t know what to say. It got me thinking about why a concept so close to my heart was so hard to put into words.
This wasn’t one of my toddler’s random thoughts and question (if you have a 4 year old, you know what I mean!). It all began when he said he doesn’t “trust” a friend. The way he used it? Spot on! It fit perfectly considering the situation he was describing.
Before I could ask him if he knew what trust meant, he beat me to it. I then blabbered on about “truth”, “lies”, “safety”, “hurt” and a bunch of other words fully aware how gloriously I was failing at this until he stopped and asked me, “Do you really know what trust means?”! I laughed then but honestly… it struck a chord.
It got me thinking about what trust really means to me and why I unable to put this into words. TRUST is one of my core values, its what I think about so often — in my values, my relationships, my company values, therapy sessions — everywhere! Yet when I had to put this into words — no jargon, no fluff — I choked! Why?
Maybe trust is when you believe someone wont hold your weaknesses against you.
Maybe its when someone holds your vulnerability gently.
Maybe its when someone you treats your deepest, darkest secrets with utmost care.
Maybe its feeling safe to be unfiltered.
Sometimes, trust is silent. It’s not in the things that someone does, but it’s in the things that someone won’t do.
Trust is when my son knows he can say anything to me and not be shut down for it. It’s maybe also when I can look at my beautiful boy and admit I don’t have all the answers.
My son and me have little conversations in bed before he goes to sleep. I told him I was still thinking about his question. He said, “You need to ask Alexa for the answer!”. I laughed but maybe that’s trust too – the freedom to keep figuring things out and still be loved while doing it.
What does trust mean to you? If you had to explain it to a curious 4 year old, how would you do it?
Novembrella 