Last week I spent a beautiful 8 days out in the wilderness…
Camping and swimming and walking.
I love being outdoors, among the trees, communing with bodies of water, away from all technological devices…
For me, there’s a deep stillness that’s present in the wilderness, and I’m so grateful that I chose to spend 8 straight days outside.
It was lovely.
BUT!
One of the days, I also got pretty tired on an uphill hike. It was 3 miles of just up and up and up and up…
I got tired, thirsty and I could tell I was getting cranky.
My partner always picks hikes with a crazy amount of steeep uphillllll walks…was part of what my cranky mind was focusing on. He is an Aires (the sign of a “charging Ram”) and I always joke about him picking “Ram-hikes”…AKA all straight uphill– the fastest way to the top.
And as I was trudging along, one foot in front of the other, heading more and more uphill, thinking about Ram-hikes…
…I decided that this was the perfect moment to tap into the practices of remembering and accessing the Joy that is present in every moment.
I’ve been focusing a lot on the practice and cultivation of Joy for several months now as I’ve been creating the Embody Joy program (see program details here).
And one of the things I’ve been doing is noticing whenever I feel far from the experience of Joy…
…and using that as a reminder to step into Joy anyway…
In fact, I’ve been making every “unpleasant” or challenging experience an invitation/ reminder to put the Joy principles from the program into practice.
So, I figured this tired cranky moment was a PERFECT time to see what would happen…
…if I shifted my focus to being in “Joy”, regardless of how cranky I was feeling.
And once I shifted focus…
…there it was.
The Joy…
..that’s always there.
I could see it. I could feel it. And it shifted my mood.
Despite kind of wanting to stay a little cranky (it seemed “fair” or “reasonable” to be cranky, and to stomp around some), instead I felt joyous and more buoyant and light.
I still “trudged” a little bit (my body was tired), but I could feel the Joy emanating from everything around me.
And while this was just one, more light-hearted moment I’ve had tuning into Joy…
…I’ve also turned to this practice recently when I’ve had more deeply challenging experiences, more emotionally difficult than just being tired and thirsty…
…like having a hard conversation with my partner, and feeling sad and misunderstood…
…or feeling triggered by an interaction with a family member that brought up deep old wounds…
And here’s what I’ve found…
Tuning into Joy in moments of challenge does not erase the experience of sadness, or upset, or anger…
….it just gives you a little bit of space from it….
….Enough space to watch it and not fully identify with it…
Bypassing or side-stepping or escaping difficult feelings is not the intention.
But creating this space has been so freeing.
When you step into the Joy that is present…
You have more breathing room…
…enough space to notice which aspects of your experience are from present time, and are directly related to what is happening…
…and which parts are triggered patterns from the past, and not directly a reaction to what is happening…
And this little bit of space, a softening and gentleness that comes from the remembrance of the presence of Joy, gives more challenging experiences the room to move…
…so that the emotions don’t get stuck…
…so the triggered old patterns and reactions in your nervous system don’t take all the way over…
…so you can stay in present time and in your power…
…and move through challenges with more calm, presence, grace and self-love.
Joy is always there.
It’s been there… every time I’ve looked for it.
Every time.
And I’m grateful to the practices and principles that have been flowing through me while creating the Embody Joy program, and the gifts and lessons I’ve learned so far…
… that I’m so excited to share with you. ❤️
I invite you to join me in cultivating these steps, and attuning to the frequency of Joy in your life.
The modules in “Embody Joy” break down the process to cultivate joy to help make the whole experience easy and second-nature, so you can access the ability to simply shift your focus, and feel the Joy that is there…
…that is gently illuminating all of life…
…when you remember to look.
I‘m so excited about this program!
Learn all about it here: www.amberleerose.com/embody-joy/
Hope to see you there!
Sending you stillness and joy from the wilderness realms.
With Love,
❤️
~Amberlee
P.S. I want to make sure you noticed that the doors Embody Joy Are open!
You can learn more about the program and jump in here 💕
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