Written by Kara Hicks
*Originally published & emailed 12/15/2012 Recently, I decided to go on a journey. It took me many places and to many people along the way. I saw and felt things I hadn’t experienced or encountered in a long time and some of them were quite new to me. I wasn’t sure where my travels would take me, but I was willing to explore as fully as possible taking in all the sights, sounds, smells and feelings in and around me each moment along the way. I didn’t have to bring anything; all I would need was already there. I had started this journey many times before, but this time I choose to experience it my way, to dive the deep waters, and explore each stopping point as completely as possible. It was a journey to discover and experience ME, my emotions, myself and my traveling companion was a little dog named Mimsy. I encountered LOTS of emotions, memories, people, places, animals and things…where I had come from and where I was going. Many of the people I met on my journey were from past friendships, relationships and acquaintances; some were deceased…others moved on in their own lives, yet all remain in my memories. Most of the journey consisted of taking time to be with each person, place, animal, and thing so I could feel the emotions that still surrounded them. I laughed, I cried, I felt frustration, anger, gratitude, sadness, disappointment, appreciation, resentment, happiness, LOVE and forgiveness that had been stored within me, waiting for my attention and to be set FREE. Sometimes I talked with them, other times I just allowed us to be together in the moment. It was quite an adventure! The journey allowed me to pay attention and notice how often I said “I Love You,” gave and received hugs, felt and expressed feelings, showed gratitude and appreciation, and enjoyed the beauty and Divine…it turned out I was fairly consistent doing all of these daily and often. At times I was surprised to find who and what I still held onto and mindfully considered whether I was ready and willing to let them or it go. My willingness to feel (and sometimes wrestle) all the emotions allowed for each experience to be more gentle than I imagined and celebrated each time the answer arrived at a “YES!!!” With each YES I felt lighter and lighter…it was hard work to go there and get there and I was willing to do whatever it took within me to do it…and ohhh how good it felt at the end. Too often I see people who are scared, reticent, judgmental, etc. about feelings and emotions and spend more effort and energy avoiding them than experiencing them. These people appear to be unhappy, angry, scattered, stuck, lonely, or ill. I’m not sure who taught us or where we learned it was unacceptable, inappropriate or weak to feel, experience or show our emotions, but what I have learned is THEY GOT IT WRONG! Feelings are part of the human experience. We have been given a gift if we choose to receive and experience it. I remember watching a movie in grade school…some of you may remember it…”Free To Be You and Me.” It showed a famous football player of that time, Rosey Grier, knitting then singing the song, “It’s Alright to Cry.” Guess what??? He was right…IT IS!!! We can cry, laugh, feel whenever it comes up and do so without excuses, explanations, reasons, or judgments…it’s true!!! When you take charge and allow yourself to feel whatever you need to feel, you feel lighter, stronger, and life becomes more manageable. I found the BEST medicine for experiencing feelings and emotions to be quite simple…DO SOMETHING!!! Draw, write, clean, build something, take your dog for a walk, play, laugh, cry, create, sing, dance, call a friend, FEEL…make room for yourself and what you are feeling to move, give it an exit/expression, and be done with it! It doesn’t have to take a long time to get it out…and if it’s been awhile since you allowed yourself to FEEL, give yourself the space for the initial backlog to dump…it gets easier and more efficient the more you do it, just give it a try…and when opportunities come along where you give yourself permission to FEEL, use the experience to FEEL as much as possible and lighten the load for the next rodeo. My journey has shown me I am an emotional being and a being with emotions and I CHOOSE to embrace that part of myself. I teach through my life experiences, so I choose to experience life so I can teach. I chose to travel this part of my journey with Mimsy and am honored to know and experience myself and the Divine through her. Shine on and Carry on!!! I LOVE YOU!!! ~Kara Comments are closed.
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AuthorKara Hicks, Archives
January 2024
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