This morning a poem arrived …
In my childhood somebody suggested,
“Just be yourself.”
What a wonderful notion!
But what did it mean?
And it came up,
Again and again,
Like a recurring messenger,
Which one day sent me off on a pilgrimage,
Across continents, Himalayan foothills,
Searching, striving, circling,
In towards a deeper, more vital path,
Towards home ground.
Along the way a beloved teacher asked,
“What do I need to feel safe with myself?”
The question dived into me, unravelling my compulsions, my addictions, my regrets,
Leaving me with a kind of grace, a vibrant gratitude.
Everything stripping away,
Throwing off the endless list of doings,
Throwing off the tyranny of my own expectations,
The driving to be a good person, a better me.
Revealing an essence,
A flowing self-lovingness,
Without conditioned judgement,
Rather, a beautiful befriending.
The Grand Permission gradually arriving at my door,
To ease into being myself,
Finally understanding I was here, always,
Available within my Awareness.
Neal Ghoshal