Stop the World

When my little child person would reach some type of overload, whatever mini-tragedy it was at the moment, he started saying, "Stop the world, mama. Stop the world." He would start having a tantrum, meltdown, or sobbing and when it was too much to bear he asked for me to stop the world. We would immediately stop everything and cuddle up. Sometimes that meant sitting on the floor of the grocery store, other times pulling the car over and him crawling up front. No matter what we were doing, it all stopped without exception.

These started as the worst moment(s) of the day, and became the treasure. The idea that we could take solace in each other even if we had caused each other's upset; truly profound. Learning how to be a person, how to function as a person, is complex. It taught me that no appointment is so critical that it can not be postponed to re-center and heal. It reminds me of the idea of making salaat; the pause to remember who you want to be, to surrender to the idea that some things are beyond your control, to wish the best for every single person around you, and to give thanks. It could seem like a nuisance to interrupt your activities, but then you rejoin them with a calmer energy as a reward.

How could a little person with so few pounds bring such an immense change to my existence? Even though I can feel overwhelmed by little battles, tiny tragedies in the moment, he can change the energy in my universe with the touch of one sweet fingertip. His sensitivity to my emotions reminds me not to take my own problems too heavily.

I think of "I Melt with You" by Modern English as one of our theme songs (though only for the main chorus). It really feels like I stop the world and melt with him. I want to stop time and soak in the moment, this time in my life. It's funny because it usually happens right in a moment I wish I could avoid or barely seem to get through, and then it becomes joy. Sharing so many powerful moments together, good and bad, brings us close like nothing I have experienced before and it is so much more than I could have imagined.

"I'll stop the world and melt with 
You've seen the difference and it's getting better all the time 
There's nothing you and I won't do 
I'll stop the world and melt with you"