Brave Enough To Be Bliss

I needed new tires and asked him where I should go for that. He told me where he gets his from online, who to have them shipped to and then offered to take my car there to have them put on when they came in.

In other words, John helped me, and I helped him. That’s the reality, but at the time, I had the complete misperception that I helped him much more than he helped me. I think I needed to believe that because if I wasn’t doing more he wouldn’t need me and then there wouldn’t be any chance he would ever love me. While he may not have given me tangible gifts, he gave me so much more that was truly priceless. One of those priceless gifts was the hug lesson. I don’t recall how it came up, but one day we were in my office talking and he said, “Stand up.” It seemed like an odd request, but I hesitantly stood up and faced him. He said, “Hug me.” I’m sure I smiled t he JV smile and was a little embarrassed, but I complied and hugged him like I always hugged people. It was quick, a couple little pats and I backed away. He said, “No, HUG me.” I didn’t understand what he was saying, so I hugged him the same way again and backed away. He realized then I wasn’t following what he was saying and proceeded to break it down for me. He probably said something like, “No, no GB. OK, come here, put your arms around me. No, like this.” And he then put his arms around me firmly, hold ing me. I was starting to get it, so we started over, and he said, “Yes, that’s better, but really put them around me. Harder. Yeah, that’s it. Now just wait a minute, don’t let go yet. Doesn’t that feel good?” I’m sure there was more conversation, but I finally understood. This is a man I ’d had sex with countless times, but when he simply took the time to show me how to really hug someone like you mean it, the Visani way, that was something I began to practice every time I had the chance. Not just with him, but with everyone else I felt safe with also. It became a challenge for me never to be the first one to let go and I quickly saw how many other people were as uncomfortable with hugging as I had been. And over time, it felt like more of my family and friends started noticing the difference and they began to hug harder and longer. Like most things, it just takes someone willing to go first. But now that I don’t see him anymore, sometimes I ask his sister to quietly give him a great big Visani hug for me the next time she sees him. And then I try to remember how it felt when I was giving him that first GB hug as I was receiving the family-type Visani hug I had always longed for.

“The best thing to hold onto in life is each other.” Audrey Hepburn

Resources ▪ The Healing Power of Hugs | Psychology Today ▪ Getting More Hugs Is Linked to Fewer Symptoms of Depression | Psychology Today ▪ The Shocking Truth About Hugs | Psychology Today ▪ Pubity | The last one is enough to make a grown man cry - (Via: @mdmotivator) | Instagram ▪ Jay Shetty | Leave a ❤️ below for this He was able to hug his grandkids for the first time in almost a decade since a stroke caused him to lose the… | Instagram

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