The Stillness of the Heart by Alanis De La Cruz
When you think of the heart, do you think of it only scientifically, as an organ that pumps blood? It is not bad that you do, yet there are other ways to think about our heart(s). In the healing and resilience perspective, our hearts help us know how we feel.
If you hear it deep inside of it, you’ll know. But how do we hear our hearts?
For me, this was a very difficult topic. I felt that I would hear my heart yet, I also thought it was other things I was hearing, such as fear, therefore I didn’t do what my heart desired.
With time (because practice makes perfection), I started to hear it more. When I say hear, I mean notice the feeling of it. Is it moving uncontrollably, does it hurt near that chest area, does it feel warm? All of these are feelings you might express and understand as your heart talking to you.
Yet, you must take into consideration the feelings and experiences you are going through at the moment. So that, the way you hear your heart aligns with the present tense. To align to the present sense, you must think of things that help you get in that area. A good way would be mindfulness, yoga, breathing exercises, or simply put, being in the now, being still. Taking a breather after a long day to sit still and listen to your heart is a good first step.
The heart and hearing our hearts is a very valuable tool in the society and culture we are a part of. Sadly, sometimes our society tends to make us bitter, sadder, and completely, disconnected from ourselves. We can see this with our everyday news, on the TV, or via other people who contact us. Remembering our hearts and understanding our value could help recenter us in ourselves again. It may be difficult, yet it is worth it. Our society would possibly be better with human beings who are in better shape and senses.
Additional tools for when you may be in crisis:
U.S. Crisis Text Line: 741-741
Ohio Mobile Response and Stabilization Services: 1-888-418-MRSS (6777)