Meet the Mixes

Teasel the jay has a bright call with two notes at once — so Teasel knows a big feeling-truth: you can feel two things at the same time. Not confusing — human. Meet three common mixes.

Thistle excited AND nervous Thistle feels this before something big — like a first day: bouncy AND butterflies, both at once. You might know this from the night before your birthday.

Doe happy AND sad (bittersweet) Doe feels this at a goodbye — warm and glad for the good time, and sad it’s ending, both together. You might know this from the last day of a holiday, or waving goodbye to a friend who visited.

Poppet proud, in a tired body Poppet feels this after finishing something hard — proud and happy inside, in a body that is worn right out. Tired is how a body feels, not a sad feeling. You might know this from the end of a long walk or a big tidy-up.

🌈 Two feelings, one moment

Feelings aren’t one-at-a-time. The best days can have a little sad in them; the scariest moments can have a little excited. When two feelings share a moment, both are real — and naming both helps.

Your own mix

Think of a time you felt two things at once. Drop a pebble on each of the two skies it felt like.

For grown-ups

Children learn that two feelings can share a moment in steps. Susan Harter and Bonnie Buddin (1987) found that young children first think a person can have only one feeling at a time, then two feelings about different things, and only later two opposite feelings about the same thing, which often comes around age ten or eleven. So a six-year-old who says “I can’t be happy AND sad” is right on time. Ask: “Was there a little bit of the other feeling too?”