He saw that Fatima’s eyes were filled with tears. “You’re crying?”
“I’m a woman of the desert”, she said averting her face. “But above all, I’m a woman.”
~ from The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
None of us is only one thing at a time, yet we strive to define ourselves as this or that, to the exclusion of anything else, often becoming angry with ourselves when we find we are not what we thought we were in a given moment. What’s more we are encouraged to abide by our culture or society’s understanding of what it means to be a woman, a man, a wife, a husband, a business person, a mother, a lover…..
Yet, our essential nature is always there and underlies everything else that we are. It is indeed the very thing that enables us to bring our unique flavour and gifts to any role that we find ourselves in.
The deepest, most important awareness we can develop is the knowledge of our true essence. We must learn it, know it, embrace it; both its light and shadow sides. It is only then that we can fully infuse that essence into whomever we choose to be in each moment. This we must do; it is what it means to be a human be-ing, to live our legacy daily.
Are you honouring your true essence; do you know who you are “above all”?
Much love,
