6Adam and the Wooden Plane

In a beautiful town surrounded by green hills and forests, Adam lived with his mother, Maya. Their home was warm and smelled of flowers. Adam was a curious child with endless energy, but he found it hard to handle the storms that rose inside him.

One sunny afternoon, while playing in the garden, he stepped on his favourite toy: a small handmade wooden plane. Its wings snapped, and his world snapped with them. His eyes filled with tears, and a storm of anger, sadness and frustration rose inside him.

“Steady breathing brings us back to calm.”

His mother heard the commotion and hurried to him. She knelt beside him, hugged him, and whispered, “Adam, let’s use our secret weapon.” He looked at her, searching for the answer, and she said, “Breathing. Remember the gift of our breath? When we’re upset our breathing gets choppy, and when we steady it, we ride the wave of feelings until we’re back on the shore.”

She held his face in her hands and said, “Take a deep breath with me.” Together they breathed in the garden air, then she said, “Now let it out slowly.” With each exhale Adam felt the weight of his feelings lighten, as if his breath were carrying the sadness and anger away.

When the storm had passed, his mother picked up the broken plane and said, “Sometimes things break, and it’s natural to feel sad. But our breath brings us back to calm, and now let’s fix it together.” Adam hugged his mother gratefully. From that day on, whenever his feelings overwhelmed him, he closed his eyes and let his breath bring him back to peace.