A Fuller Picture of Co-Counseling
I was interested in a post to the RC Community e-mail discussion list about a new kind of listening project. Co-Counselors did listening exchanges with non-Co-Counselors, rather than just offering one-way listening. I think this can give a fuller and more accurate picture of Co-Counseling than just offering to listen, and I was struck by how it might be used in family work.
For the past year I have doing short mini-sessions with my eleven-year-old son after we do special time. We usually take two or three minutes each. When I presented it as an option, my son eagerly agreed to it, and we have been doing it ever since.
He seems to appreciate the opportunity to be my counselor. I am able to use his attention well and can often cry hard with him. He is a great counselor for me both because of the attention he can bring as well as the closeness of our relationship.
He gets a picture of what it is like to offer his attention and assist someone in healing from their hurts. It is a contradiction to young people’s oppression; he gets a glimpse of how powerful he is. He also gets a fuller picture of Co-Counseling: of how all human minds are good and powerful and how we get to use our minds and relationships to help each other re-emerge.
discussion list for leaders of family work
(Present Time 189, October 2017)