Give It A Hug
Many years ago, I worked under a course leader, Rita, in a human potential enterprise. This lady was earthy and bawdy, gray-haired and makeup-less, no glamor, had few filters and shot straight from the hip. We loved her, even though some laughed at her behind their hands. Her oft-repeated phrase was, “give it a hug,” and she said this whenever anybody complained about anything or had an upset. On the surface, it seemed dismissive, but indeed it wasn’t.
And it had profound meaning for me, as it resonated with something that happened to me as a child.
When I was in seventh grade, my sister and I would head down the hill to our apartment for our latchkey afternoon each day, from the bus stop. Mom worked tirelessly as a single parent to give us what we needed.
There were two girls who would follow us home and taunt us, kick at our bookbags
When we told Mickey, the neighbor who looked out for us, she said she would meet us the next afternoon.
The next day, she met us at the bus stop and asked us to point out the two girls and the one who had been the biggest bully (the towheaded one with the beady eyes).
I remember thinking, “Yeah! They’re gonna get it good!”
But I was stunned when she stood in front of the two of them, crouched down to their level, spoke to them quietly for a moment and put her arms around the biggest bully, pulling her in for a giant hug.
When we got back to her place, I registered my indignation with her. But why! Why did you hug her! She’s so mean to us, like a monster!
And Mickey said, “All she needs is love.”
So when I met Rita, 50 years later, “give it hug” had huge meaning for me.
Give It A Hug
Where can we “hug” the things in life that are threatening to make our lives miserable, if we let them?
Let’s look together!