Do you ever have those times in your life when a lot is going on emotionally? There's sadness and grief coming up, there are outbursts of fiery anger, and then there is laughter in between.
Sometimes these highly emotional times bring up thoughts like "Am I going crazy?"and "This can't be normal!?!" At times your body and heart are going in opposite directions and your mind feels like it's fighting with itself.
Well I've been having one of those times lately.
And you know what I've come to realize about this particular period of big emotions?
I've realized that I'm proud of myself. I'm proud of how I've navigated (and am still navigating :p) this period. I'm proud that I'm giving space for all of my emotions, creating opportunities for healthy emotional expression, AND I'm still living. I'm engaging with my life. I'm enjoying opportunities for play and laughter. I'm holding space for these experiences, thoughts, and emotions which most of us think of as opposites.
This is something that I would have found difficult a few years ago. I would have created even more inner conflict around these "opposing" emotions and feelings.
And here I am today holding space for what I call "the both/and".
This is the opposite of black-and-white or all-or-nothing thinking. This is living with a wide open heart, a grounded mind, and a connected body. This is engaging with life in a maximized way. And this is exactly how I want to be living!
This means that when tough things occur that there can be an emotional period for me. This means that I ask myself questions like "Wow this hurts so much, will I be brave enough to open my heart this wide again?"
This is the kind of living that I want. The kind of life that I'm creating for myself, and I'm creating it on purpose.
It's not for everyone.
So I ask you...is this the kind of living that you want?
If so, then start playing in the space of both/and. Start noticing moments when you can change a BUT to an AND. Notice moments when you can hold opposites and still feel grounded within yourself. Become aware of all of the opportunities that you have to engage with life with your heart wide open and your truth firmly rooted!
I find that this kind of living has opened me up to even more nourishing parts of myself and engaged activities within my life. I've found that approaching life in this way has led me to the place I am today where I'm doing work that I love and feeling all of the big feelings along the way!
So here's to sharing our experiences and feeling our feelings while remaining engaged with life! Briar