We live in a world that is very quick to name things. Somewhere along the way, a dangerous shift often happens: labels stop describing challenges and start defining identity.

Wanting this—truly “doing life” with others—isn’t a flaw. It’s a sign of being awake, of noticing what matters, of refusing to settle for surface-level exchanges.

My son, now in third grade, is still holding onto an innocence that feels increasingly fragile in the world around him.