What do you say, when someone tells you they are depressed or anxious? When someone tells you they lost their job or their mom was diagnosed with cancer? Maybe, say nothing. Definitely, stay present.

Look that person in the eye and let your guard down. Emotion is infectious, and your job right now is to feel and to listen. Allowing yourself to feel the loss won’t fix it, but it’s not your job to fix it. Feeling it is enough. Feeling it allows a safe and sacred space to emerge. Feeling it opens the door to connection, to intimacy.

Don’t judge, just feel, and when you do, consider a few simple words. I’m glad you told me so, or, I am here to listen when you need me, to open the door to more listening, more feeling, more connecting, more love.