A person is born in a community of others, lives in a community of others and dies in a community of others. No one can survive outside of relationships. We live in real virtual or imaginative relationships. Relationships create us, define our identities, and form our way of living.

When one finds himself/herself in relationships, either by luck, accident, association or intention, one pays attention to the degree of relatedness, commonalities and differences between her/himself and others.

Ability to become one’s witness in life is embedded in our relational nature of being. When opportunity presents itself, two people meet, engage and celebrate each others’ participation in life.

Witnessing begins and continues as long as two people allow and want to become involved with one another. Witnessing may perceive as an action that depends on how long a relationship lasts and how open two persons are together. Experience of loss is a sign of losing a witness in life. That is why it is hard for people to cope with loss. It also speaks to the importance of having a witness in one’s life. The act of witnessing remains and continues in one’s life even when a relationship ends. Even though a relationship ends, its memories remain alive in one’s life history. We want others (dead or alive) to watch and be with us when we rise up or fall down.

Allow yourself to be open to others; let yourself become a witness in someone’s life; let others be a witness in your life journey. Don’t be afraid of impermanence nature of relationship, remember every relationship is an invitation to new possibilities. Give permission to others to become part of your life as a witness. Happy relating and witnessing,

Happy Possibilities,

Tahereh Barati, M.A, RMFT