For me, this means many things: leaning back into the waiting arms of my family, challenges and all. It means remembering my connection to the earth. It means opening to the sunshine and blue sky, letting the wild winter winds blow right through me. It means remembering the delicious sensation of breathing on the meditation cushion, as well as the delicious resistance to practice, moving my body through a yoga pose and goofing off with my kids, tasting a bite of food, sip of tea, smile of a friend.

At root, we all long for connection, recognition, celebration. Right?!

Without getting too analytic about it, we have all wanted this for as long as we can remember. What would it be like to settle into that knowing, and then open to it? What would it look like to start by recognizing yourself as who you are?

I call this “being genuine.”

This doesn’t mean that the waves won’t be tumultuous. The storm may still rage. But how you ride the storm can and will shift if you are doing it from a place of resource.

The next step is to relax and enjoy.

When we are actually in our seat, rooted, connected, recognizing ourselves as who we are, we are able to relax. Again, this doesn’t mean it’s easy, simple, or “enjoyable,” but we can be less clenched, less caught-up, less stirred up. We can find a measure of ease.

This is about transformation and transmutation. This is our journey of waking up.

There is nothing to “buy into,” no koolaid need be drunk, no waiver signed. All we do is soften into who we are, connect to the vast array of resources at our disposal, and then look up and out, extending our wakefulness out into the world.

From here, communication can occur freely and without bias. From here, our every action becomes seamless, a steady and shining expression of our presence. We become. We awaken. Everything transforms, and yet, we are, at root, who we have always been.

Waking up, therefore, is a coming home.

This article was originally posted here, on March 4th, 2019, on www.thepresencepoint.com