Yesterday I went for a walk through the botanical gardens with a lovely friend of mine. A true romantic, she approaches the world with an eye for fantasy. Of a garden with roses and waterfalls, she imagined a unicorn prancing by. Of a courtyard surrounded with flowers and vines, she imagined a prince and princess dancing. She shares her visions with an air of reverie and faith in magic, and I always walk away inspired and refreshed.
We went to Dobra Tea, an exquisite tea house with unusual teas from all over the world stored in a wall of drawers reminiscent of an apothecary. The walls are lined with oriental rugs and photos of far off places. Low tables encircled by ornate cushions comprise the seating. It was a lovely way to end our evening.
The conversation turned to the energy of the self. There is an aspect of our true selves that is much larger than our self image. I could see this in her. Compassionate, empathic, and intuitive, her true self extends out into the space around her like a glowing light, with wisps and tendrils moving freely out into the world. Yet, she holds on to a certain humility that makes her appear smaller, almost as if to say, “Don’t worry, I’m not a threat.” I’ve seen people do this before.
There are times when we can sense how big we really are, and we are so big and expanded, we might feel a bit overbearing, or perhaps we’re simply uncomfortable with such seeming grandiosity. Normally, feeling big and expanded means that we are taking up someone else’s space, and we will bulldoze them if we’re not careful. So, instinctively, we shrink ourselves and lower ourselves, the way we might approach a dog in order to pet it.
Yet, although there is an unspoken rule that we must be small in order to live in social harmony, often making oneself small merely limits our capacity to offer what we have to offer.
On my way home, I pulled up beside an enormous, bloated van with a license tag that said “LIL O MEE.” Ha! That summed it up nicely. Today, realize that you are a great vehicle, able to carry many passengers to beautiful places. Taking the metaphor too far, but you get the idea. Be big! It’s okay.
