Leo’s heart thumped like a drum. Tonight was the school play. His hands were sweaty. A sharp whisper in his head said, “You can’t do this. Something is wrong with you.”
Backstage, he found his dad __Dr. Patel, a psychologist, was kneeling by the costume rack.
“My brain feels too loud,”
Leo whispered.
Dad’s eyes were warm. “A loud brain doesn’t mean something is missing,” he said. “It means something is strong.”
Leo frowned. “What’s strong about being scared?”
“Your feelings are like super-hearing,” Dad said.
“They catch tiny sounds
- your breath, the crowd, your heartbeat. That means you notice what others miss. Noticing can help you and the people near you.”
He pressed a smooth pebble into Leo’s palm. A tiny image of a god symbol was painted on it in blue and gold. “When your mind gets loud, rub this and count your breaths,” Dad said. “Courage isn’t a giant rock. It’s a small stone you choose to carry.”
The curtain shook. The lights came up. The air smelled like dust and paint. Leo stepped onto the stage. He saw Lily in the front row, gripping her program, face pale.
Leo squeezed the pebble. The raised paint felt like a friendly touch. He took one slow breath. He gave Lily a tiny, brave smile.
She smiled back. Her shoulders dropped.
Leo spoke his first line. Clear. Steady. His brain was still loud, but now it felt like a guide telling him when to breathe, when to pause, when to share his small stone of courage.
The play moved forward. Leo did too
one line, one breath, one pebble at a time.
Moral:
“Psychology is not just the study of disease, weakness, and damage. It is also the study of strength and virtue. Positive Psychology methods is not just to fix what is broken; it is nurturing what is best in you.”
- Quote by Martin Seligman, from his book Authentic Happiness (2002)
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