Tongue and Pole

The tongue is the long wooden pole that runs from the oxen back to the wagon. Without it, the pulling does not reach the wagon at all. In practice the tongue is communication and attunement: how an advocate speaks to the child, how an advocate listens, how an advocate notices the change in the child's body before the change in the child's words. Pieces in this part cover trauma-informed language, the practice of attuned silence, the cost of advocate distraction, the difference between asking a child a question and pressing a child for an answer. Forms that fit this part include `STRATEGY_PRACTICE` on co-regulation language, `LENS` on attunement, `HELP_TONIGHT` for the hard conversation, and `TRAIL_STORY` for moments of repair after a missed cue. The journey vocabulary includes: the line that reaches, the pause that listens, the right word at the right moment.