Journal December 2025 Release - Flipbook - Page 54
52
According to Michael White (2012), it is important for the conversation to be
structured like a scaffold: moving on, step by step, helping the person to move
from what is already known and familiar to what is possible to be known. It is a
way to put into practice, in the therapeutic context, what Vygotsky called the
‘zone of proximal development’. Looking from this theoretical point of view, this
first question was a big leap, at a point in the internalised-other conversation
when Sílvia was still adjusting to its dynamic. So, I stepped back and began asking
more familiar questions about stories I already knew. I asked Mr. Álvaro about his
wife, his friends, the rides to school in the blue Vemaguet, and other shared
moments with her granddaughter. Little by little, Mr. Álvaro found his voice, and
the conversation got into a much better flow.
Adriana: Mr. Álvaro, could you tell me about taking your grandchildren back and
forth in that turquoise Vemaguet? Did it really give off so much smoke?
Sílvia’s Álvaro (laughing): Oh! It sure did…
Adriana: And what about Sílvia? How did she deal with that?
Sílvia’s Álvaro: She laughed with me… she stood there. She was not ashamed of
me.
Adriana: When you look back and see little Sílvia, a young Sílvia, what stands out
the most?
Sílvia’s Álvaro: She was always joyful. She used to shine so bright! I was so proud
of her! I still am. When she was 16, she loved to listen to my poems’ recital.
And our conversations about politics were amazing!
When I asked Sílvia’s Álvaro if he had any advice for his granddaughter about how
to manage romantic relationships, he became puzzled again. I told him not to
worry, that Sílvia and I would figure it out, and he would learn it too. I thanked
him for such a lively conversation and all the good stories, and we said goodbye.
Then, I spoke with Sílvia again and asked what she thought of the experience. Her
Narractivating Conversations with the Internalised-Other: A Therapy with a Little Bit of Fairy Dust.
Journal of Contemporary Narrative Therapy, December 2025 Release, p. 45-65.
www.journalnft.com
