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MENTORING Debra Anderson is an assistant professor of Training and Mentoring and the chair of the Training and Mentoring Curriculum at Denver Seminary. She earned her MA in Christian Education from Golden Gate Theological Seminary in 2001. Debra has been a pastor's wife, church planter, conference speaker, Bible teacher, and theological researcher, and has written numerous articles and ghostwriting projects for popular Christian authors. M A MEETING OF THE MINDS By Debra Anderson "Missed your birthday. Happy belated!" I received this message recently, from the woman who mentored me when I was in college. These five simple words told me that I'm still important to her. Even though we haven't been face-to- face for 25 years, her words agreed with my perception of our fruitful, intentional years together. They revealed to me that the impact I made on her was as lasting as the effect she had on me. They were pleasant words to receive. What is it about our past mentors that persists with us? We know our mentors attend to us well, but their effect is not impermanent. Science helps explain a mentor's lasting effect through the paradigm of interpersonal neurobiology. This interdisciplinary view of the human experience suggests that the mind, the brain, and relationships complete a triangle of human vitality. Relationships, such as mentoring, affect our brain's function and structure. They help us to link what's going on in our body to our memory and to our thoughts. Science suggests that our brain, being embodied in our activity, is neurologically altered in relational learning. Interpersonal neurobiology also suggests that the mind requires the interaction of others in order to grow and flourish. I've been studying interpersonal neurobiology through the work of Dr. Dan Siegel, who describes this relational effect as resonation. In mentoring we resonate with one another with detectable results. On the surface we might think these results are tacit, but physiological neural shaping is taking place. Indeed, new neurons are forming in our brain and expanding our interpersonal, relational, and emotional development. When other minds around you attune to you, growth occurs—and that growth has life-long effects. Understanding how brain science and human formation collide is exciting. As we receive the presence of our mentors, they become embodied examples who empower our hope and expand our ideas. Our mentors certainly give us inspiration, but our relational connection also establishes neurogenesis, creating brain pathways for our entire lives. Our mentors matter not just in the moment, but for the continuous progress we make in our days and years to come. Mentoring is a true meeting of the minds in a relationship of grace. ENGAGE 15 4X-imagez/iStock metamorworks/iStock