What I stopped doing on mornings when I was told, 'I don't want to go to school.'
'I don't want to go to school.'
Every time I heard those words from my daughter,
I would panic.
'Hurry up.'
'You're going to be late.'
'Do your best.'
Words I said thinking of my daughter.
But those words
might have been cornering her.
One day, I realized it.
It wasn't that my daughter 'hated school.'
'I want to go, but I can't.'
She was carrying that kind of pain.
I stopped saying 'Do your best.'
Instead,
'That's tough, isn't it?'
'Thank you for telling me.'
'Let's think about it together.'
I started saying things like that.
It didn't change immediately.
But little by little, my daughter
began to tell me her feelings.
'I think I can go to the nurse's office today.'
That one sentence made me truly happy.
And there was a limit
to trying to handle it only at home.
By consulting with the school and having the teacher help us
think of a method that suited my daughter,
we found places where she could feel safe
that we couldn't have found as just parent and child.
Even now, there are mornings
when she says, 'I don't want to go to school.'
But it's different from before.
My daughter has come to think,
'It's okay to talk about it.'
Being able to go to school isn't the only goal.
Being able to talk about feelings with peace of mind.
Being able to ask for help.
I believe that building up those things
becomes a big step for a child.
To families having similar mornings right now,
you and your child are not alone.
You've really done your best today too.
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