Your Essence

One of my favorite laws listed on the website of Two Worlds Wisdom School is the Law of Happiness. Stated simply it says, "Happiness is doing who you are." This may be simple to state but it is certainly not simple to implement in one's life.

Fourteen years into a difficult marriage, I went to my first therapy session in 1993. I remember telling the therapist, "I don't know who I am - I have lost me!" Over the next few years in my search for wholeness and my true essence, I asked many questions such as:

Am I really this person's wife - is that who I am?

Am I really these people's mother - is that who I am?

Am I really these people's daughter - is that who I am?

Am I really these people's teacher - is that who I am?

Am I really this body with all of its quirks and flaws - is that who I am?

Of course none of these things are who I am at my core. My true essence exists at the level of my spirit but the essence of who I am is difficult to find because it is all buried under who my parents have told me I am, who my culture has told me I am, who my church has told me I am and who my relationships have told me I am.

The realization that I am not what I do or a sum total of my relationships or even the package of DNA that I received from my parents gave me some breathing room to begin to open up to seeing who I really am. It was then that I began to notice Heartsong Moments - sacred moments that seemed to open the door a crack and let me peak in and get a glimpse of the real me. These moments caught my attention because they triggered a special vibration in my heart space - almost a song of energy that reverberated throughout my being.

One morning, while teaching third and fourth grade language arts, I finished up a creative writing lesson, walked through the classroom to see that everyone understood the lesson and had successfully begun their task, and was returning to my desk to check on the readiness of the next lesson. Suddenly, I noticed an unfamiliar rush of energy from my heart flooding my body. It was my first recognized experience of a heartsong. I had taught a good lesson, the kids had caught my enthusiasm and my vision and were working with excitement and energy. In that moment I realized that even though teaching had been a difficult role for me to fit into - at my core I am someone who loves to help someone catch a vision and then watch them move forward with enthusiasm and energy. It is who I am.

Watching for these Heartsong Moments helps us to slowly build a vision of our essence which then invites us to align what we do with who we are and live a happier life. Have you experienced any Heartsong Moments today?