The Courage to Witness

FEELING

In a noisy, distracted world, witnessing is radical.

To witness is to see someone as they are — not through the lens of our expectations, not through the filter of our assumptions — but as they are in this moment. It’s an act of love, even if the word love is never spoken.

Brené Brown’s research tells us that when we share our stories in safe spaces, shame can’t survive. Shame thrives in secrecy and silence. When our story is met with stillness and empathy, something shifts.

The Four Agreements offers two guideposts for witnessing well: Don’t take anything personally and Don’t make assumptions. They keep us from turning another’s truth into our own story.

Oprah, in What I Know for Sure, says, “To be seen, truly seen, is the truest form of love.” I believe this is what witnessing offers us — the gift of being recognised without being reduced.

The Enneagram offers clues here too. Some types (like Type 2 and Type 9) are natural witnesses for others, but often struggle to be witnessed themselves. Others (like Type 4 and Type 5) long to be seen, yet sometimes resist letting others in. The courage to witness works both ways: offering it and receiving it.

In our 8Notes spaces, witnessing isn’t a passive act. It’s attentive, alive, and willing to stay in the presence of what is — joy, grief, uncertainty, or hope.

Reflection prompts:

1. Who has truly witnessed you in your life, and how did it change you?

2. What makes it hard for you to let yourself be witnessed?

3. How might you offer the gift of witnessing to someone this week?

Possible next step: Explore 8Tracks — where music becomes the language of witnessing one another’s inner worlds.