When Isia gets upset about something, her focus locks entirely on the desired outcome. She forgets how to reason, how to articulate, sometimes even how to talk. I understand her steadfastness very well- she gets it from me. When she was about a year old, I began working with her to find her "volcano breath" in these moments. When I see her getting upset I'll say, "Please take a volcano breath." She'll look at me, breath in, then breath out reaching her arms over her head and releasing them in a wide arc back to her sides. It doesn't always work, few things do, but sometimes it's just the reminder she needs. A release and a pause before the storm. It took me over twenty years to find my own volcano breath, and sometimes I still have to go looking for it. I was especially grateful for it this holiday season.