I am reading Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone by Brené Brown and I find myself highlighting almost every word.
“True belonging doesn’t require us to change who we are. It requires us to be who we are.”
Wow, right?
"Belonging is the innate human desire to be part of something larger than us. Because this yearning is so primal, we often try to acquire it by fitting in and by seeking approval, which are not only hollow substitutes for belonging, but often barriers to it. Because true belonging only happens when we present our authentic, imperfect selves to the world, our sense of belonging can never be greater than our level of self-acceptance."
Our desire to be part of the pack pushes us to be untrue to ourselves. This leads to a disconnect in our psyches that causes unhappiness. The unhappiness pushes us to seek validation from outside sources, the pack. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.
To get off this roller coaster of maddening behavior, we need to remember that what we seek is inside of us, always.
"So as I dug deeper into true belonging, it became clear that it’s not something we achieve or accomplish with others; it’s something we carry in our heart. Once we belong thoroughly to ourselves and believe thoroughly in ourselves, true belonging is ours."
I end my classes reminding my students that the peace and tranquility they seek is always inside them. The secret is to use your tools (breath) to carve a path and find it wherever it's hiding. The same holds true for acceptance and love...these things are always inside you, find the proper tooi to carve a path and find them...no matter where they are hiding.
Next time, we will talk about how the current ideological climate is tearing us apart and how we can begin to come back together.
Did you LOVE the music you heard in class?
You can find all my playlists on Spotify!
Did you attend my Flow in the Dark special event?
See the photos here and stay tuned for the next one!
A bunch of people asked about my amazing disco lights, link below!
Unicorn Yoga is happening THIS weekend!
Don't miss it!
