Undone Chores and the Path to Connection
One mother was really frustrated because her son was coming home from school and not doing chores that needed to be done. She had tried punishing him and taking things away, like his television time, and had left notes on the television demanding he do his chores first. I suggested that instead she put a note on the television asking how his day had been and consider making a snack for him when he got home. She decided to try it.
Her son came into the kitchen and sat down at the bar stool and told her all about his really stressful day. When he finished talking about what had happened, he went to do his chores without her saying anything.
She had been afraid that unless she pushed, he would never do the chores. When her fear moved out of the way, they were able to connect and the chores also got done without an issue. After that, it was much easier for her to access her own internal guidance and find ways to move through their conflicts with connection.
