I had my last coaching session with my longest standing client today. We worked together for three years, and I got to support him through both his parents’ deaths and a layoff, although for the layoff that happened towards the end of our engagement, he didn’t really need much support because he was high on his resilience by this time – a proud moment for both of us.
A few months back, my client decided to pull out all his losses from under the rug and grieve them fully and ferociously. Through this, he learned to face “negative” emotions head on.
Being the artistic man he was, he once told me that he heard a piece of dialogue in a movie that gave him an insight: “When a parent passes, they are not really gone. We carry them with us because they shaped us for good or for bad.”
Wise, reflective, and creative clients are my favorite.
As someone whose parents are still alive, I got a preview of what’s to come through his story. Sometimes, we all need a nudge to get our affairs in order, to forgive our parents, and appreciate what they did do for us. Most importantly, to make sure our karmic bonds are left healed, so the lesson doesn’t need to be repeated again.
This is how I’m integrating this client into my life. And maybe I’ll share this with him one day.
