Welcome to this meditation,
My friend.
I've named it,
Just As I Am,
A Belonging Meditation.
It's designed to support you in feeling a sense of deep,
Unconditional belonging within yourself,
In your family system,
And in the greater fabric of your life.
My hope is that you will feel nourished from this practice,
And remember that your belonging has nothing to do with fitting in.
Those are two completely different concepts.
Your belonging is intrinsic.
It's your value in the system,
Especially in your family.
Fitting in can come and go with the wind.
There are no roots in this concept.
It's merely an idea.
You can use this meditation any time you're feeling the sting or grief of feeling different or separate from your family,
As if who you are isn't good enough,
Or what you have to say or do isn't enough,
Because that simply isn't true.
And we're going to venture deep inside you to see why.
Find a comfortable place to sit or lie down,
And gently close your eyes,
Allowing your body to soften.
And with each breath that you take,
Begin to arrive in this moment.
There's nothing you need to do.
Nowhere you need to go.
Right here,
Right now,
Is enough.
Let's take three cleansing breaths together to help your body and your mind center in this moment even deeper.
At the bottom of your next exhale,
Take a really deep breath in,
Filling up through the belly and the chest.
And then on the exhale,
Let it go.
Another inhale,
Maybe a little bit bigger this time,
More expansive,
Breathing into the chest even deeper,
Holding that breath up.
And exhale out through the mouth,
Maybe even make some sound.
And with every breath,
Your nervous system begins to settle,
And your body starts to believe you are safe here.
I want you to feel your body supported by the earth beneath you.
Feel how you're held,
Whether you're on a chair,
A cushion,
Or on the ground.
Allow yourself to lean into that support.
Feel the connection of your body and the support beneath you.
You are allowed to take up space.
This meditation is your homecoming,
A return to the truth that you always have been,
Are,
And always will be enough,
Not because of what you do,
What you look like,
What you say,
But because of who you are.
You belong right here,
Just as you are.
On the inhale,
Say to yourself,
I belong here.
And on the exhale,
Just as I am.
Say it silently to yourself again.
Inhale,
I belong here.
And exhale,
Just as I am.
I'd like you to imagine behind you stands your family system.
Behind your right shoulder is your father's lineage.
Behind your left shoulder is your mother's lineage.
All those who came before you.
You don't have to see their faces clearly.
Just know that they're there.
Even with their imperfections,
Their pain,
Their choices,
Each of them existed to give you life.
You are the continuation of a story.
And that story lives in you.
As you notice where you stand in your family tree,
I want you to imagine seeing yourself brightly lit in the front of your lineage.
Notice how you stand in the front,
Ready to move the family system forward.
What color is this light around you?
Do you see how everyone follows you?
That whether or not you fit in does not matter.
You are standing in your dedicated spot just for you.
You're lit up,
Beautiful and bright.
This is your role.
You are someone's child,
Sibling,
Cousin,
Niece or nephew,
Grandchild,
And so on.
No one and nothing can take this role away from you.
As long as you are alive and born into this family,
We,
You,
Belong.
So sit here for a moment feeling that relief,
The love,
The roots in this.
You matter.
You belong.
No matter what this family,
Whether or not people can recognize it.
I'd like you to whisper,
Thank you,
Ancestors.
Before I came to be here in this family,
I take the gift of life and choose to belong.
Whether or not I fit in.
I know my soul chose this family.
I am willing to stay open long enough to understand why that is.
And now bring your awareness to your heart.
Feel the warmth there.
And if it helps,
You can place a hand gently over your chest.
Remind yourself,
I belong in this body.
I belong in this life.
I belong to myself.
I belong in this family.
There is nothing to prove,
Nothing to fix.
A quote from Maya Angelou says,
You are only free when you realize you belong no place.
You belong every place and no place at all.
Brene Brown explains this quote by saying,
True belonging is a spiritual practice.
It's the sacredness of both being a part of something,
But also the courage to stand alone.
And for the people who have the courage to stand alone,
We know we're at risk of connection.
It's a sense of being a part of something even when we disagree,
Have a difference of opinion,
Or we love something different.
That's the mark of true belonging.
To be able to say,
Yes,
I am a part of something bigger,
But I can also stand alone when I need to.
You belong everywhere and nowhere,
And that is liberation.
Awareness,
Back to the space around you.
Come back to your breath.
Wiggling the fingers and the toes,
And take one more deep,
Nourishing breath,
Maybe stretching the arms overhead,
Or inviting in some gentle movement as you awaken.
And as you open your eyes,
Carry this knowing with you.
You are not too much.
You are not too little.
In all parts of you,
Just as you are.
