The unexpected power of a tiny "and yet" on the richness of life experience and a fun exercise

As I write this, my neck is hurting, I have a slight summer headache and nausea, my clothes are sweaty and stinky after a boxing class, and yet, and yet, I feel full of joy and possibility.

And yet - such a world of spaciousness in these two tiny words. I am so grateful to Madelaine Ley - artist and philosopher. She created the space to experience the power of "And Yet" in one of her sacred sessions. I am also super grateful for friends who invite me and accompany to such lovely events.

During the sacred session, we sat underneath the high arches of the church and meditated on the beauty of the light moving across the stained glass windows, and the possibility within the words "And yet".

"And yet" gives space to the contrasts in our experience - a bridge between disparate aspects of reality... we can feel pain and nausea and joy at the same time ... a glimpse of rich multitudes of aliveness within us and our lives.

These two words give space to contrasts in our experience - a bridge between disparate aspects of reality - where we can feel pain and nausea and joy at the same time. These two words give us a glimpse of rich multitudes of aliveness within us and our lives.

We are used to labeling things as one or the other - I am happy, sad, angry...And that might very well be a slice of the truth, but rarely is it the entire truth.

In "truth", at any moment, there's blood rushing through our body, nerves transmitting messages back and forth, the air traveling in and out through our lungs. We are a constellation of a millions of sensations and processes at every moment.

So here's a tiny exercise to try out for fun, inspired by Madeleine's session.

An exercise in embodying contrasts

Here's an exercise to discover and experience the contrasts alive within you right now.

• Complete one or more of these sentences
  • I am (feeling) _________________ and yet _______________________
  • The world is __________________ and yet _______________________
  • Person X [Insert name] is _________ and yet _______________________
• Take a couple of slow and deep breaths - in and out.
• Now, observe what sensations you feel for each of the words/feelings you identified above. E.g., if you filled in "I am feeling tired and yet grateful"
  • Where does that tiredness show up in your body?
  • Where does that gratitude show up in your body.
• Just take a moment to experience (and enjoy) the sensations alive within you right now.

That was it for today. I would like to see the contrasts you encounter within, send them to me.

Want to see if embodiment life and career coaching can help you? Schedule a call here: https://calendly.com/beant-ux/discovery-call

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