Joywork Protection 4

Today's theme has to do with protection,

Not as a way of isolating ourselves from others,

But as a way of connecting more deeply to the people in your life.

I want you to start by thinking about a relationship that has had some conflict in it.

What relationship doesn't,

Right?

So choose a relationship that means a lot to you and think of a time when you were annoyed with this person or felt misunderstood.

Got the scene in mind?

Good.

Now repeat after me.

It's not me.

I'm not alone.

Let's do this a few times together.

It's not me I'm not alone.

It's not me I'm not alone.

It's not me I'm not alone.

It's not me I'm not alone.

It's not me I'm not alone.

Okay,

Now let's stop.

Did you get to the point where everything kind of runs together and the words become nonsense or maybe worse than nonsense?

I not all,

Only snot me.

Snot me all alone.

Good.

It takes nonsense to cut through the illusion and laughter does this like a hot knife.

You see,

There's a paradox in the you are not alone,

It's not you thing.

And this is very important.

We might even say it matters.

Take a deep breath and exhale.

Listen to what I have to say to you now.

It is true that you are not alone.

We don't come into this world alone.

We can't survive alone.

We need others from the moment we get up in the morning and every second after.

Did you weave your blanket on the bed?

Did you harvest those coffee beans?

Did you install the power grid to warm the water?

You see what I mean.

And when you factor in all those who came before you to create the world as it is and all the ancestors and cultural change makers and all the plants who keep our air clean and the water that we drink,

Well,

It's all kind of overwhelming and we might just fall to our knees in the kitchen even before the coffee is ready,

Weeping with gratitude.

But here's the sticky part.

Even though we are not alone and everything I just said is true,

It's also true that it's not you.

Yes,

Your ancestors put their DNA in you along with all their unfulfilled dreams and wishes and diseases,

But you don't have to accept them.

It's not you.

Yes,

The world is filled with systems of power and oppression that use people and the natural world as things to be used and discarded and thrown away.

Well,

Some people get very,

Very rich,

But you didn't create this system.

It's not you.

And yes,

The world is indeed a beautiful place and you can bliss out even in the midst of traffic on the way to work when the rising sun hits that spot over the river just right and you feel something so much bigger than you that you can handle another day in your cubicle.

But the sun is not there for you.

It's not you.

We don't look outside our window every morning and make a plan for the tree to grow.

We do not say,

Get those buds on my desk by Tuesday at noon.

We don't fret and worry about the leaves coming in or try to control their color or placement.

We can't stop their colors in the fall or attempt to prevent their falling and we cannot will the bare branches to cover themselves in winter.

But this is what we try to do with our lives,

Our minds,

Our bodies,

Our spirits.

The peace you feel affects the world.

The power you have affects the world.

And protecting your peace and your power is essential to co-creating the world we envision.

So let a tree be a tree.

Let you be you.

Because like a tree,

You are not alone.

There is a whole forest here with you.

And like a tree,

It's not you.

It takes all the elements and nutrients to support your growth.

When this wisdom begins to take root in you,

Your relationships with others will begin to change.

You won't need protection from others because you know that they are separate from you.

You won't need to protect yourself from others who might see your uniqueness as the negative thing because you will know that it's normal and natural and a very good thing for you to be exactly who you are.

I'd like you to journal about this now for as long as you like.

You might just begin by writing,

I am,

And see where this goes for you.