For years I thought that my inner child within [1] was about ten years old. This is about the time my parents separated for a divorce. Like most children, I took this news personally and thought that I was personally responsible for their break-up. I recall the Valentine’s Day after my parents separated I gave them both together a huge Valentine’s heart box filled with Russell Stover candies. I could tell something was wrong by the look of sheer anxiety on my father’s face.
In addition to this divorce, my inner child has been somewhat over-shadowed by being the replacement child for my older brother who died as an infant the year before I was born. At least with my father, I always felt like the replacement child who did not quite measure up. With my mom, this was not always so much the case.
Today I feel that my inner child is more like 6 years old (than 10 years old) though I do not know of a specific incident that would have triggered this child within to “stop” at this age. Perhaps my parents stopped communicating with each other when I turned 6, perhaps I experienced some childhood tragedy that I can no longer recall or name, perhaps this was the beginning of financial differences between my Mom and my Dad and all that that entails.
In any case, this six-year-old child within tends to believe in all sorts of magic just as would a child at six years of age. She is a matchmaker at heart and seeks continually to imagine people together who might be good with each other – imaginarily or not. She tends to see things in circular time or dream time often before they occur in linear time. This early perception is not jarring to her mental health so long as there is not a safety component to it. If there is a safety component to the perception, my child within seems to turn ten years old and not only feels ”unsafe” but also feels the responsibility for the “unsafe event.”
I have spent years if not decades trying to understand this child within and her fears for safety. I have particularly been focused on this child and her safety concerns since becoming a mother 17 years ago. If I listen closely, it may be that this six-year-old child holds no fears only perceptions of a beautiful place and beautiful planet. It may be that my true child within is largely guarded from feelings of unsafety, and it is more the child of ten years or the child of divorce or replacement that holds onto those feelings of responsibility and angst and anxiety.
If only I could get the ten-year-old child to listen to the six-year-old child, perhaps I could start to see and hear and experience a world in which everything is whole and in which God is truly in control. If I am able to honor that six-year-old child fully, I may be able to let go of the ten-year-old child who forever feels responsible for any and almost every calamity that exists. The ten-year-old feels responsibility for safety of self, safety of community, safety of nation and safety of the world, while the six-year-old appears unencumbered by these rampant safety concerns. The six-year-old is largely concerned with whether or not people are happy and who might meet whom and what is needed in order to stay happy.
[1] I am aware that there are several texts that have been published that address finding the child within and healing the inner child. I have never read any of these texts but I have worked directly with a therapist over several years in listening to and acknowledging that child. I would assume that my therapist has read these books and has imparted their knowledge to me. These books are not included in my Bibliography as I have never read them.
Mental Health is Health 