Living with Closeness
What is meant by the need ‘closeness’? Imagine a toddler, which rests happily in the lap of its mother, allows itself to be teased and chuckles quietly. Here is a small list for adults: leaning against someone, giving and accepting caresses, feeling warmth, surrendering and doing (having to do) nothing, understanding each other without words, being touched, feeling secure, feeling trust, feeling connectedness, revealing oneself openly with all that there is, narrating without shyness and inner censorship, finding and giving comfort, letting go, letting oneself fall, being vulnerable, shy, defenceless and coy, delighting in harmony, celebrating comfort, feeling acceptance and belonging. This arbitrary selection may give the impression about what forms of living and experiencing the need for closeness may take. At the core of all this is the expectation that it is worth allowing another to become important and to also allow him to see that.