Intention

Maya Angelou said, "I believe the heart is the only thing we can trust". For some time, I struggled to wrap my head around this because i tend to be (believe i am) a very practical person. But when i paused to think about it, i realised that i actually follow my heart often. Not in the whimsical way modern movies might sometimes present it but in a cultivated manner, where i have learnt to trust my intuition in addition to weighing my reality.

Three years ago, i made a bold professional (heart) decision even when the timing and finances seemingly told a different story. I knew that if i did not follow my heart then, i would miss an important opportunity to grow and be happier. Interestingly, the courage to jump in 2016 came from another heart decision in 2009 that prepared me for an even greater leap seven years later. This time my fears were greatly reduced because i had began to identify the synchronicity in my life's run. It is also not a coincidence that i received a profound book, The Power of the Heart by Baptist de Pape, at the end of 2018 and it was my first read as i began the new year. I still have many questions from 2016 that are unanswered but i am learning to trust that living the question is sometimes a necessary step to recognising and accepting the answer, which might not come immediately or in the form i anticipate. I am learning to be patient with what my heart is saying and being confident in this connection.

In order for you to connect with your heart, you need silence and an attitude of gratitude. The heart's messages get drowned by noise and you cannot take note of them until you learn to regularly practice some quiet time. I have a tradition of taking a retreat as part of the ways in which i seek silence. As you give thanks for what you have, you gradually connect deeper with your heart and open yourself up to even greater possibilities. A power that will keep you grounded and safe.

In a world where cruelty is an everyday occurrence, we can only defuse the violence and hatred by having the courage to act from the heart - the authentic source of love, kindness and cooperation. "What we do accumulates; the future is the result of what we do now" ~ Pema Chödrön ~