She Lost a Child, Found Her Voice: The Power of Pausing in a Relentless World.

Many thousands of years ago, there was a woman who lived in quite a large village for the times. She was well known by everyone for she was always rushing around and always busy.

She had four children to look after, and she also had to work because her husband was very lazy and, quite frankly, useless.

She would have to plough a field with a child on her back while two of her other children would sit in the shade under the big trees.

Her eldest child was a young boy who would sometimes help with looking after his siblings, but most of the time he was out on his adventures.

One morning, as she was preparing to plough the field to plant a new crop, she noticed one of her children was sick. She was sniffling and coughing.

Worried about her health but also knowing that she needed to plough the field, she was stuck in a quandary. She couldn't trust her husband to look after the sick child, for he was also sick. (Apparently).

Her older son was nowhere to be seen, so it was all down to her. She also couldn't afford to get sick herself, so she would have to leave her on the side and then take her to the witch doctor later.

By the time she had ploughed the field and planted the seeds, her child was a lot worse. Panicking with worry, she took her children up the hill above the village to see the witch doctor.

But she was too late. Her poorly child passed away from her fever. The woman was distraught. All she did was race around trying to do everything and never received help from anyone.

It was a hard life and a cruel one as well. She decided that she would go and see the wise old man that lived in their village and ask him for advice on what to do.

She noticed that the other women were not running around and as busy as her. Why was her life so challenging and others weren't.

The woman felt powerless and miserable as they had a small ceremony for her child. It was not uncommon for death to be an ever present companion, but it was still devastating.

Her husband had shouted at her for not doing better and yet never offered to help. She had slaved and toiled and still failed at being a good mother.

She didn't have the time to go and see the wise man for she was always rushing around, looking after the children, cooking, looking after their animals and making clothes.

Finally, she couldn't handle it any more. She took her two young children with her and went to visit the wise man. She had to wait for him to finish his breakfast, which seemed to take forever.

She sat there, fretting about all the things she had to do and yet was sat here doing nothing but waiting. Finally, the old man invited he into his hut.

She berated him for keeping her waiting, and he just smiled at her, which infuriated her even more. She explained what was happening in her life and everything she had to do, and that she had just lost one of her children.

She sat there weeping in despair, as just telling her story to the old man upset her. The wise man sat quietly and took her hand compassionately. He didn't say a word, but just sat and listened.

The woman sighed deeply. She began to think of a solution to her problem. The wise old man still hadn't said a word. The woman began to speak once more.

She realised that she allowed her husband to be lazy. She was too gentle on him. Treated him like one of her children, and so that is how he acted.

He did not act like a man and take responsibility for their family. She realised that she had created a monster, and she would have to find a way to reverse this.

She needed a partner to help her and be a team to look after the household. She also realised that she would have to learn to say no.

Others were always asking her to do things and to help them because she was capable, and she always made time for others. But she would have to change that, as it just made her miserable.

She was always tired and exhausted, but she realised that if she got sick, her family wouldn't survive. She never had time to be sick. She just had to keep going.

She saw how this was making her unhealthy and also sad. She realised that her family was vulnerable because she was racing around trying to do everything.

She knew she would have to slow down because then she would make better decisions. If she had taken her sick child to the witch doctor straight away, maybe her child would have survived, and maybe she would not feel this crushing guilt.

Her chin lifted as she stared at the wise man. Determination spread across her face. She knew what she had to do. Suddenly, she realised the wise man hadn't spoken a word, and she had thought of all the solutions her self.

She angrily told him this, and the wise man smiled once more. “You don't need knowledge from me”, said the wise man. “You simply needed the time and space to think about what is going on in your life and what you need to change”.

“Your knowledge is all deep within you, as it is the same for everyone. But you can only hear it when you pause and stop. The universe is always teaching us lessons to improve our life”.

“If we do not stop and listen to the message, then it will have to keep teaching us the same lesson again and again. And it will be very painful and upsetting.

Listen for these messages and take action. That is all you need to do”.

The woman, grateful for the Wiseman’s advice, although still apprehensive that she come up with all the actual answers, took her leave.

She changed everything she needed to, she turned her husband into a man instead of a boy, and she made sure that everyone did their chores and helped around the house.

Everyone became much happier and more content. She was happier, which made her family happier. Her husband was actually happier taking responsibility, for he now had a sense of purpose.

It was a powerful lesson, but everything turned out for the better. She was now more in control of her life and no longer racing around being a victim.

When last did you slow down and take a pause. When last did you re-evaluate your life. Do it before it is too late.

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