The path to joy can often be filled with many obstacles and booby traps along the way. For, as children, our joy expressed itself as “who” we truly were in our essential nature not how we behaved. It was natural and came easy until our caretakers, perceived us as disruptive, noisy, over-exuberant or causing them discomfort. Due to their own separation from joy, they began to teach us to separate from our own.
I find myself doing this all the time with my daughter. My separation began with getting in “trouble” for my exuberance, so when I start to feel discomfort in relation to my daughter’s exuberance, I put a damper on it. In a distorted way, I think I’m trying to help her and yet I am passing on my belief that experiencing her joy will lead to pain. The belief that I am “trouble” as my essential being is the false belief that has me control myself and my daughter.
So, as I return to my true nature, joy, I meet my old belief along the way. I may create someone judging me for my exuberance, someone shaming me for my playfulness or telling me that I need to “control” my daughter and her joy. All along the way, as I meet these obstacles, I work with smiling at them and taking the power out of any external force that I’ve given the power to separate me from joy!
Today, have fun watching your child and seeing how joyful their play is. As there joy increases become aware when you feel your discomfort especially if other people are around. See if instead of putting a “damper” on your child you can turn inside and lift the “damper” off yourself. Then see if you can move toward joining in the “joy” instead of shutting it down!
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