How do I rebuild trust with my adult child after years of conflict or distance?

Trust doesn't rebuild through grand gestures or apologies alone—it rebuilds through small, repeated acts of showing up as you are. Rabia didn't love from a pedestal; she loved from her actual broken, devoted, real self. Start there. If conflict has been the pattern, acknowledge it without excusing yourself or over-explaining: 'I see how that hurt you. I'm doing differently now.' Then *do* differently, consistently, in small ways. Show up when you say you will. Say no when you mean no. Don't pretend to be someone you're not to win back favor. Your adult child is watching to see if this version of you is sustainable or another performance. It takes months, sometimes years. That's not failure—that's reality. Rabia understood that love is long-suffering not because it's weak, but because it's real. Expect setbacks. When they happen, don't collapse into shame or defensiveness. Just return to showing up honestly. Trust rebuilds in the quiet, repeated moments when someone learns they can count on you.