"How Are You, Really?"

Photo by Hunter Peress

I got the most wonderful gift recently. One of my friends asked, "How are you, really?” The qualifier made this one of the most honest and sweetest questions I've been asked lately.
 
It told me that she didn’t just want a perfunctory answer:
 
“I’m okay."
"I'm hanging in there."
"Adulthood."
 
And so I shared a bit: That there are days when I feel productive and powerful, and others when I'm overwhelmed and exhausted. The middle ground is hitting the snooze button and hoping a nine-minute reprieve is enough time to get my life together. She listened without judgment, opinion, or solution.
 
And I'm ever mindful that a friend is not a therapist. So it's best not to completely wear them out with your woe. But I was still grateful to be sincerely asked. 
 
I hope someone asks you. Or, if you're in a gift-giving mood, ask them. 
 
 

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