Be Your Own Damn Joy

YOUR OWN DAMN JOY

The price of admission
into heaven
is your own damn joy.

Please stop denying yourself this
and please stop telling yourself
you'll only (maybe) get there when you die—
get there now!

What kind of damn fool
puts off heaven?

Child, it lives in the center of your heart
that endless meadow of happiness and praise.

The world needs you
to go there now,
to do your part in turning it
into a paradise.

- Chelan Harkin

I’ve recently returned from leading a Sacred Women's Retreat at a serene sanctuary nestled an hour north of Puerto Vallarta. Oh, how I wish I could have transported you to join us in this transformative experience! Since I still haven’t mastered that skill, I wanted to share a profound teaching that marked the beginning of our week-long journey.

The overarching theme of our retreat was to awaken from our daydreams and embrace the fulfillment of our sacred dreams. Our initial task was to recognize these daydreams because, in order to awaken from and transform a dream, we must first acknowledge that we are indeed dreaming!

Here’s a simple way to identify when you're immersed in a daydream: Pay attention if you catch yourself uttering the words, "When _____, then I'll be/feel _____." This is a sure sign that you've slipped into the realm of daydreams. These daydreams are like unconscious, self-imposed contracts we make with ourselves.

For instance:
"When I lose 40 pounds, then I'll feel confident."
"When I have money in savings, then I'll be peaceful."
"When I secure that job, then I'll be happy."

Once you've identified three to five of these daydreams, take a moment to cross out the first half of the sentence and rewrite a new contract with yourself.

It could read something like this:
"I feel confident."
"I feel peaceful."
"I feel happy."

I know it seems simple, but trust me…this shift in your energy is an important step toward living your sacred dream…and it’s the step women took on the first day of our retreat. They arrived carrying frustrations, angers, resentments, fears, confusions, deep grief, and heaviness from unconscious daydreams turned to nightmares. Then, throughout the week, they moved through all the steps of transforming those nightmares into sacred dreams.

The ocean was their witness, its waves echoing their release and renewal as they shed nightmares of self-criticism, fear, worry, pain, anger, grief and doubt and embraced their true selves, wholeheartedly.

Through movement, they found liberation, unlocking the doors to joy and unearthing the light within. By the end of the week, they were walking around as their "own damn joy" …ready to bring that joy back to their friends and families.

This journey has reminded all of us that joy is not a destination but a choice, a powerful act of rebellion against a world that often forgets its own divinity.

I wish you the same joy.

Love,
Deb