Oh Sweetheart - these two simple beautiful words have the power to so soothe my heart. This week during a peer networking meeting a colleague shared Jeff Foster's Poem - A Prayer for the Overwhelmed. I had heard this poem once before at a silent meditation retreat, and the revisiting of this poem was so timely. My heart burst with gratitude to hear it again.
What a lovely way to greet oneself - hearts open wide with these two simple loving words.
On days like this, grey gloomy ones, I notice how extra hard it is to move, to motivate my body, my parts of my self, to get outside and do the one step at a time dance....So I am reminded to lean into these feelings, to be with them, greet them with these two simple words...."oh sweetheart"....There is no other way I have to be, there is no need to push through, to be 'strong' or no need to pretend. Instead I can choose to be just what I am right now....As I notice leaning into the grey of the day, I feel a softening. This is what it means to be with all the good, bad and the ugly....The part of me that can get melancholy on days like this needs comfort and cozy, an acceptance to be slow and mindful...I don't need permission to do this, I need acceptance of self to do that, to listen deeply to what my blue part is saying and to allow her to just be as she needs to be. And this shall pass as quickly as it arose...
Here is Jeff Foster's Poem: A Prayer for the Overwhelmed
What a lovely way to greet oneself - hearts open wide with these two simple loving words.
On days like this, grey gloomy ones, I notice how extra hard it is to move, to motivate my body, my parts of my self, to get outside and do the one step at a time dance....So I am reminded to lean into these feelings, to be with them, greet them with these two simple words...."oh sweetheart"....There is no other way I have to be, there is no need to push through, to be 'strong' or no need to pretend. Instead I can choose to be just what I am right now....As I notice leaning into the grey of the day, I feel a softening. This is what it means to be with all the good, bad and the ugly....The part of me that can get melancholy on days like this needs comfort and cozy, an acceptance to be slow and mindful...I don't need permission to do this, I need acceptance of self to do that, to listen deeply to what my blue part is saying and to allow her to just be as she needs to be. And this shall pass as quickly as it arose...
Here is Jeff Foster's Poem: A Prayer for the Overwhelmed
Oh, sweetheart.
Life is overwhelming for you at times, l know.
Don't listen to the ones who call you over-sensitive or too weak for this world.
Your sensitivity is exquisitely beautiful!
But you must learn to stay close to yourself.
You must learn to breathe.
To invite curious attention deep into your body.
Life is overwhelming for you at times, l know.
Don't listen to the ones who call you over-sensitive or too weak for this world.
Your sensitivity is exquisitely beautiful!
But you must learn to stay close to yourself.
You must learn to breathe.
To invite curious attention deep into your body.
Allow yourself to feel overwhelmed,
and you won't be overwhelmed, I promise.
It's just a feeling.
A precious part of you longing for love.
It will pass when it's ready.
Let it stay awhile.
and you won't be overwhelmed, I promise.
It's just a feeling.
A precious part of you longing for love.
It will pass when it's ready.
Let it stay awhile.
Don't pretend to be strong, the one who has it all 'figured out'.
There will be time for answers soon enough.
Now, simply give 'the overwhelmed one' safe passage in your heart.
Drench the feeling of overwhelm with gentle attention; bathe it in overwhelming love.
There will be time for answers soon enough.
Now, simply give 'the overwhelmed one' safe passage in your heart.
Drench the feeling of overwhelm with gentle attention; bathe it in overwhelming love.
It's okay to feel overwhelmed sometimes, it really is.
Even the strongest feel overwhelmed, for their strength lies in their vulnerability.
Even the strongest feel overwhelmed, for their strength lies in their vulnerability.
Your sensitive nervous system is perfect, and l love you for it.
And it's all okay, here.
It's really okay, here in the arms
of the present moment.
It's really okay, here in the arms
of the present moment.
- Jeff Foster