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Deeper than even believing is experiencing.

Often times we hear the statement “live in the moment”.  Be present.  The emphasis of the statement placed on being in the moment the breath is taken.  Yet, at times, we ignore the “live” portion of the statement.  What creates believing?  Experience – passionate living.  When we experience the moment to the core of our souls, it goes far deeper than believing a statement that is simply read or spoken.

When life is experienced the soul is filled.  There are experiences of ecstasy, joy, love, sadness, sorrow, hope and untold mysteries.  All of it pure life.  There are times that living what is expected of us as spiritual beings, we forget to experience life.  We forget to allow the emotions that come with experiencing life to occur.  Emotions like anger and sadness are regulated like some gas burner, always kept off.  Are they not part of experiencing life?  If one does not feel sadness – how is it that they can experience ecstasy?  Cannot anger become the teacher of passionate desire?

I had a teacher once that would tell me often, “You must let the beast out to play”.  Meaning that all must be experienced, if not it will come out twisted and in ways which will cause consequences.  Consequences that are not always in our best interest.  Yesterday, I had the opportunity to speak with someone who fought the tears back with such determination I was taken back.   While the determination was deep, it was only serving to “stuff” the emotions and cause them to come out twisted in the form of self-hatred for even having an emotion.  A consequence not benefiting the soul in any manner.  It is important to remember that tears cleanse the soul and make richer expressions of love and passion.  Another teacher shared with me many years ago that in order to remain balanced one must have really good cry or a really good belly laugh.  Both are equally valuable and equal teachers.

One must embrace their entire being, including what we deem as shadows of self, in order to dance the dance of life; to truly experience life.   When we allow all of our being, spiritual and emotional, to be experienced we remove the self-imposed limitations that we place on ourselves.  Is not the goal to achieve in life to be a pure channel of energy flowing for a direct connection with the Divine?  All emotions are a gift of the Divine.

My holiday wish for each of YOU is to experience life breath by breath, tear by tear, and laugh by laugh.