I asked Maya, my 7-year-old daughter:

“Can you tell me one thing that you like about you?”

She thought for a moment and said:

“One thing is that I am blessed. Does it count?”

“Yes.”

“I am blessed by God to be loved. To have a loving mom and loving family. And to have food.

And also…

I love being me. I love because I am surrounded by love, and I have happy things in my head, I care about people, and I have two friends. And even though I have only two friends, it means that I have my back covered all the time.”

When I heard her words, I felt both joy and quiet reverence.

Because what she said - so pure, so simple - is what every child truly needs to feel: I am loved, I am safe, I am cared for, and I belong.

As parents, we often wonder how to raise confident, kind, and resilient children.

But the truth is, it begins with us - with the emotional safety we offer through our presence, our patience, and our love.

Children don’t need perfection.

They need to feel that home is a safe place for their feelings, their mistakes, and their truth.

That love doesn’t disappear when they struggle.

That they can trust their little world because we hold it steady.

When a child grows up surrounded by emotional safety, they learn that it’s safe to be themselves.

That they are enough as they are.

That they can trust love.

Life happens. We all struggle. We all do mistakes. As parents we worry a lot about how we raise our children. The responsibility feels so heavy so many times. 

What I have learned through my work and as a parent, is that children don’t need perfect parents, not expensive lifestyles, or parenting skills by book. They don’t need perfection, just presence. A safe, steady, loving presence where they can relax and enjoy life.

And when we, as adults, look back and realize we didn’t always have that sense of safety or unconditional love - this is where our healing begins.

Because our inner child still longs to feel what my daughter expressed so simply:

“I am blessed. I am loved. I have my back covered.”

As adults, and loving parents that we wanna be, it is our sacred task to become that safe, loving presence for the child within us - 

To whisper:

“You are safe now. You are loved. You can rest. I’ve got your back.”

The way we love our children shapes their becoming.

And the way we learn to love our inner child shapes our own.

May we all create homes - inside and around us - where love feels steady, safe, and true. 

🤍What would your inner child say if you asked, “What do you like about you?”

🤍How can you show them today that they, too, are blessed, loved, and safe?

With love and presence,

Aniela 🤍