Two Ways to Center

There are times where I am so focused on how much I thoroughly suck, or how much I loathe myself top to bottom, nothing else seems clear or possible.

One of these times was a few weeks ago, and there at the bottom of this deep pit of pity, the teacher I was working with said something very simple,

"But beneath all that, you think you are pretty great."

And she was right! Deeper and more constant than the very real-seeming complex mess of confusion, self-doubt and self-loathing is the clear bell-like tone of joyful, undeniable, simple self-appreciation.

But was this universal? This past week, I tried it out on my clients: in the midst of working out some very real-seeming, complex mess of confusion, self-doubt and self-loathing I asked, "Is there also the possibility that under all that you actually think you are pretty great?"

And the same pause that I experienced, and the same simple, clear bell-like tone of joyful, undeniable self-appreciation bubbled up.

One clear, gentle but fierce, way back to Center.

And this morning, getting up at 7am to pee, the pink and plump morning air over the view from my bathroom, bathing the valley, hills and houses, reminding me the world is a gift, always waiting to give itself to us.

What's the second way back to Center? Sweet, clear, joyful nature, guiding us back to our Nature.