So how do we navigate the space in-between? How do we gently, lovingly guide ourselves back towards ourselves and find the courage to emerge into our wholeness?
First, we listen…
Taking time to sit in meditation, time alone to walk and take in nature, building time within our days and weeks to rest and tune in to ourselves is vital.
Take a moment now. Find a comfortable seat, take a deep breath, and invite your body to take up space. Give the breath permission to drop into the belly and exhale completely. Drop the shoulders, unfurrow the brow. Close the eyes and place the left hand on the heart and the right hand on the belly.
Say to yourself: “I am here for you, and I am listening.”
Give yourself a moment to absorb this intention, listen for a reply. Sometimes the body responds with the kind of relief which brings a tear to the eyes, a yawn, or maybe the heart or gut leaps with recognition.
Repeat to yourself: “I am here for you, and I am listening.”
It’s in these quiet moments that we can find clarity, a gentle reminder of who we are and what it is we need. At times, clarity might feel elusive, and that’s when we know we need to come back to the practice again. But finding clarity, or simply seeking it through quiet practice offers us the gift of connection. Deep heartfelt connection.
Once we form these bonds it’s much harder to ignore, overlook or deny ourselves. And once we’re connected, the nourishment that connection brings will guide us to seek further nourishment for its strength and growth. The steps towards a life that we no longer need to escape from can be gentle, slow, and sustainable. They don’t have to be wholesale, immediate or insensitive to the status quo we have invested ourselves in.
In his poem, ‘The bud’ Galway Kinnell writes:
“The bud
stands for all things,
even for those things that don’t flower,
for everything flowers, from within,
of self-blessing”.
Our inner worlds are like the buds of early summer, and our practice of connecting with ourselves is what it takes to flower. We may need to re-learn and re-teach ourselves along the way but emerging into our own wholeness is a gentle evolution which simply requires our presence, attention, love and permission.
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