I first wrote, Honoring 2020 with Courage and Fear last year and it's just as relevant today as it was then.
It reminds us that every emotion serves a purpose. Every experience is the opportunity for more freedom. Yoga asks us to become “masters of emotions not so we can become free of them, but so that we can become free in them.”
You will never know courage without meeting your fear.
I met a lot of fear and uncertainty in 2020. However, 2021 asked even more of me. I entered a new layer of my shadow side…it asked me to stop letting my past define my future. With the help of my Somatic Dance practice I was able to stay present with what was rising up and fall in love with myself all over again.
Today I am stronger than ever because of it.
As we close another year with the ensuing pandemic, I ask you a second time―can you feel how powerful you are for having made it through? You are here, now in this moment with new tools to face the next fear that arises.
Facing our fear is how we release its power over us. Ignoring it creates more fear, anxiety and isolation. To pretend there is no shadow is what paralyzes us in fear and disconnects us from our courage.
One of the most powerful teachings from yoga scholar Dr. Douglas Brooks is that, “Fearlessness is not an ideal. Fear needs good company. It needs the company of courage. It needs the company of discernment. It needs the company of evidence and knowledge. It needs to not stand alone.”
As westerners, there’s this tendency to separate and isolate any emotion or experience we perceive as negative. We shame ourselves into more isolation and fear. We’ve lost touch with the meaning of wholeness and the range of emotions that is our human experience.
To be on a growth path is to hold space for the range of our experiences. Fear is such a basic part of our human-ness that our sympathetic nervous system has evolved over billions of years just to help us face our fear. Even fear has a purpose. It has kept us alive in some of the most harrowing moments of our life. It will always be a part of the conversation when it comes to human emotions, feelings and experiences.
Accepting and integrating our fear is key to standing in our power.
Brené Brown’s research on vulnerability and courage is a profound part of this conversation. In brief, she found that every act of courage comes from a place of vulnerability. Let me repeat, every act of courage came from a place of fear and vulnerability…. We will never know how truly courageous we are until we face our fears.
“To release all fear” is to pretend that we are exempt from being human. We end up isolating ourselves from true happiness, joy and the beauty of love and living this human life. Growth is allowing all of the marginalized parts of yourself back into the greater matrix of you. It is standing in right relationship with everything that makes you, YOU.
Real power comes from creating room for fear. Can we let fear be a part of the conversation? Can we get curious about it? What is it trying to tell you? This way when it does arise it no longer becomes a liability, but an asset―when it’s in the company of courage.
Fear and courage go together. Nothing stands alone. Courage helps us see what we are truly made of. Fear keeps us humble, keeps us honest and more importantly keeps us aware and awake.
Invite your fear and discover how truly powerful you are.
Take this moment and write down what you learned from your fear.
Use this to help you get started: “In 2021, I faced my fear of ___________ and discovered how powerful I could be when ____________. I am now closer to feelings of _____________ that bring me back to my wholeness.”
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
This January 12th I'm leading a new group of women who are ready to meet their fear with compassion and discover how truly courageous they are.
We start with simple, slow, steady changes to our daily routine and self care that changes how we feel and approach our life. Conscious choices lay a foundation to experience more energy, grace, and ease everyday.
Together, we will discover if you are ready for this journey.
Start by booking a free Clarity Call with me HERE.
Learn more about the program HERE.
Next quarter starts January 12th! Only 4 spots left!
YOUR TIME IS NOW.
#honor #fear #courage #loveyourshadow #love yourlife #wholeheartedbeing#soulfulliving#healthyhabits#selfcare#smallchanges#powerfulimpact#changeyourhabits#changeyourlife#evolutionspeaks#desire#transformation#lightthepath#grow#evolve#wholehearted#yoga#ayurveda#polyvagaltheory#somatics#reiki#wholebeingayurveda#community#womentogether#heal