Lonely - An Unlikely Meeting

In this episode, Theo the eagle and Kai the tiger discover that loneliness is not just about being by yourself, but about longing to be known. As they share their struggles and find connection at the Gathering Pool, kids and parents are invited to explore how telling the truth about lonely can help us feel seen, loved, and connected.

Resources, activities, and discussion tools for families are available at:
 🌱 howareyoufeelingtoday.net

Learn more about counseling and family resources at:
 🌿 vothcenter.com

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:08

Good morning, good afternoon, or good evening. This is Alex Currington coming to you from the Voice of the Heart Center. Welcome to the How Are You Feeling Today podcast? A podcast for kids and parents who have feelings. I'm really glad you're joining me today. Every time we're together, we'll check in on one very important question. How are you feeling today? Not what were you feeling yesterday or what do you think you'll feel tomorrow, but what are you feeling in this moment right here, right now? Take just a moment, look into your heart and answer the question: Am I feeling anger, fear, hurt, sad, lonely, shame, guilt, or glad? If you have someone in the room with you that you can share it with, look at them and name all the feelings that you have right now. If you're listening to this alone, think for a moment to yourself. Who could I share this with today? Every morning, Theo would fly up to his new favorite branch and sit. His claws wrapped tight around the branches, and he would watch. He would watch his mom fly quickly in and around the trees. He would watch his father patch up any fallen pieces of the family nest. His older brother would perform those flips and spins that were unmatched by the rest of the birds that lived near them. Theo, however, was a clumsy flyer. Theo always seemed to fly into a branch, spin a little too slowly, and just could not complete things as smoothly as he liked. When he finally completed a flip, he looked back and noticed that no one was watching. Meanwhile, on the jungle floor, Kai was learning how to pounce. He would choose different locations in the jungle and practice sneaking up and pouncing on objects around. Just when Kai felt like he was getting the hang of it, he pounced right into a tree trunk. He often wondered, is there something wrong with me? Tigers are supposed to be master hunters. While Theo was flying and practicing his flips and spins, he got caught up in a fierce wind. The wind blew and Theo was off balance. He wasn't sure exactly what to do. As he tried to gain his balance back, Theo clipped his wing on the branch of a nearby tree. Theo came tumbling down to the jungle floor, hurt by the fall. Theo felt lonely and afraid. Theo sat staring at the ground, wondering if he was the only one who couldn't do what eagles are made to do. While Theo was sitting there, he heard the loud roar of a tiger. When Theo turned around, he saw a strong tiger tripping over a root in the tree next to him as he was trying to pounce. The tiger tumbled and rolled right towards Theo until they were staring at each other. When they looked into each other's eyes, they did not see an eagle and a tiger. They saw themselves. Theo realized that the tiger made mistakes just like he did. Kai found out that eagles are not always masters of the sky. After a moment of silence, Kai said, Hi, I'm Kai. Sometimes being a tiger is really hard. Theo did not know that tigers had to practice doing tiger things. Theo said, Sometimes flying's hard for me. Kai didn't know that eagles could sometimes have trouble flying. He thought they were experts at it. Theo and Kai no longer felt alone. They sat together for a while talking about their bumps and bruises. Then Kai said, Come on, there is a place nearby where me and my friends meet together. Even though they were both sore from their falls, the new friends headed towards the pool. Kai led Theo to a place where the trees opened to a wide, quiet place. A place where the stream slowed and gathered into a still pool. Kai said to Theo, we call this the gathering pool. It's where we meet so we can be together. The waters rested there instead of rushing, and the jungle seemed to breathe a little slower. Nearby, Theo began to notice the others. A chameleon on the branch near the water had his tongue stuck to a tree. The snake in the tree was tied up in a knot around the branch. There was a turtle stuck in his shell, trying to break free. Theo and Kai felt comfortable being with other creatures just like them. Theo felt something new in his chest. Theo realized that everybody is practicing. He felt like he belonged. Kai felt it too. Kai introduced Theo to the others, and Theo knew this would be a place he would return to again and again. Just then, they heard a loud smash nearby. An older monkey had slipped from a branch and landed on the jungle floor. This was a monkey they had seen many times before swinging easily through the vines of the jungle. The monkey dusted himself off and jumped into the trees, disappearing into the jungle. Kai and Theo looked at each other and laughed, remembering something their grandfathers used to say to them, it takes a lifetime to learn how to live. Everything is just practice. They didn't speak about it, but they both knew. In that moment, as they looked into the clearing ahead, Theo saw his mother struggling against the strong wind and his father dropping a branch from his beak. They looked back toward the jungle and Kai saw his mother slipping into the stream that she normally had no trouble jumping over. Theo and Kai stayed still at the gathering pool, Theo with his new friends. After a while, Theo spread his wings and lifted bravely into the air. Kai slipped back into the jungle not alone anymore. They both knew where they could return. Have you ever been in a crowded room and still felt lonely? I sure have. That's because being lonely is not about having people next to you or how many people are around you. Lonely is about having people around you in your life that really know you. People that you can share with. We feel lonely when we don't share the feelings of our hearts with the people we love or with God. You feel lonely when your parents are away on a trip, your friends are too busy to be with you, you don't know how to do something that other people enjoy, or you don't think anyone understands how you feel. Sometimes when you're lonely, you might choose to be alone, try hard to get attention, or to get somebody to notice you. Stop caring about something that used to be really important to you, or you might feel bored. When is a time that you felt like Theo and Kai, kids and parents? I want you to share together about a time you felt lonely. This would be a time that you felt like no one noticed you, or a time that you did not enjoy the same things that everyone else did. If you would like, pause this podcast and share with each other. Lonely is your heart saying, I want someone to know me and see me. When we feel lonely, we can find the places where we belong and matter, the places where we are valued. Let's play a game to help you know each other just a little bit more called Did You Know. This is a game where I'm going to call out a couple of questions and I want you to just answer it with the truth. These will be really simple questions to help you know each other and yourself just a little bit better. It might help you feel closer to the people you know to learn some new things about them. There are no right or wrong answers here, just the truth. Let's do it. Alright, first up, what is your favorite snack? Your favorite snack. Whatever it is, just say it out loud to the people around you or think in your mind, what is my favorite snack? Alright, what is your favorite color? What's your favorite color? My favorite color is blue. And I also like when it's paired up with orange. Blue and orange are my favorite colors. What's yours? Alright, do you have a favorite place to be? Do you have a favorite place to be? And if you do have a favorite place to be, where is it? Let us know where it is. Okay, do you like when it's quiet or noisy? Quiet or noisy? What's your favorite? Quiet or noisy? Alright, next up. What is your favorite animal? What's your favorite animal? And just for fun, make their sound. Make their sound. My favorite animal, this may surprise you, probably not. My favorite animal is an eagle. I love eagles. What's yours? Alright, would you rather read or watch a show? Read or watch a show. What would you rather do? Alright, let's throw in a movie. Read, watch a show, or what about a movie? Okay, what would you rather do? Okay, next up, what is something that makes you laugh really hard? Like laugh so hard that your belly starts to ache a little bit. What's something that makes you laugh really hard? Okay, what is something that you're really good at? Something you're really good at? What is something that you usually need help with? Something you usually need help with? And maybe who do you ask for help? Who can you ask to get help with that thing? Alright, last one. What do you want to do when you get older? What do you want to do when you get older? Alright, well done. Give yourself a pat on the back and look into the eyes of a person near you who you now know just a little bit better. Thank you for telling the truth about the times you felt lonely. When you feel lonely, you can talk about it with someone who loves you, pray, write down how you feel, spend time with a friend, or do something kind for someone else who might feel lonely. And before we go, here's one more thing you can do together today. Find a quiet moment to sit down with someone you love and draw a picture of a time you felt lonely. You don't have to explain it all, just draw. Then, if you want, take turns sharing your pictures. If you'd like to share it with me, you can email it to me at alex at vocenter.com. That's alex at VOTHcenter.com. You can also find resources for today's episode on howareyoufeelingtoday.net. There you will find coloring sheets that feature Theo the Eagle and Kai the Tiger. You'll also find a reflection guide to help you talk about today's episode and what loneliness looks like in your family. Again, those resources can be found at how are you feeling today.net. All of this information will be written for you in the show notes of this podcast. Home must become a place where you feel known, and you might be surprised at how much less lonely you feel when you share what is going on in your heart. This has been the How Are You Feeling Today podcast, a podcast for kids and parents who have feelings. Thank you for sharing your heart, and until next time, keep heart!