06/02/2024
This beautiful poem about BELONGING by David Whyte really hit a chord this morning....here's the poem and my reflection on why it hit me so deeply ...
It doesn’t interest me if there is one God
or many gods.
I want to know if you belong or feel
abandoned,
if you can know despair or see it in others.
I want to know
if you are prepared to live in the world
with its harsh need
to change you. If you can look back
with firm eyes,
saying this is where I stand. I want to know
if you know
how to melt into that fierce heat of living,
falling toward
the center of your longing. I want to know
if you are willing
to live, day by day, with the consequence of love
and the bitter
unwanted passion of your sure defeat.
I have heard, in that fierce embrace,
even the gods speak of God.
David Whyte: Essentials
I never felt like I truly belonged since I was 6, when two kids on the playground told me I was too big to play with them.
That moment of rejection, of feeling unwanted, made me think something was wrong with me,
that I didn't fit in, especially in groups.
So, I tried to prove I was worth something by being good at things like sports, cooking, fishing, and resourceful endeavours,
and spending time alone with my black labrador, who I knew was mine.
My abilities grew from the false belief that I wasn't enough, and whenever I felt let down, I'd end up messing things up - leaving friends, girlfriends, jobs, and eventually started my own businesses, became a famous photographer, photographing big wigs and fat cats.
Later on in life I had everything but still felt unhappy.
My kids and partner bore the brunt because I was never satisfied, always looking for something better.
Entrepreneurs call this the shiny object syndrome.
Today, after working with thousands of people as a mentor, I see so many are in pain, struggling in their marriages, their kids are suffering, and many feel lonely, wishing they belonged and that their lives mattered.
That's why I do what I do.
I want to help heal the hurt that's been passed down, ease the pain and loneliness, and show you the way back to loving yourself deeply, to feeling like you belong.
To show that love is the greatest gift and legacy we can offer the world.
Love in relationships, in families, and a strong, unshakable love for yourself. It's about connecting to the love that's always been there.
The shiny object is within you.
All it takes is letting go of the obstacles and working through the pains from your past, like I did, to see that you've had what you've been looking for all along inside you.
This is what drives me, my mission.
If you reach out, I'm here to offer a chat or two, to help you see your own worth.
I'm here to help transform your relationships and guide you back to ...
BELONGING.
I've got five available times in the next two weeks. Send me a message and I'd love to hear your story of belonging.
