Growing Myself

The other day I was listening to a guided meditation online. The teacher invited us to create an inner sanctuary, a place within where we can go when we need to withdraw and experience peace, quiet and renewal. She suggested we think of it as a little room behind our heart, a room we can decorate any way we want and fill with all the things that add to our well-being.

During the meditation she guided us to plant seeds in our sanctuary that would nurture us and benefit our growth. I immediately related to this idea, being the frustrated former gardener that I am. These were not ordinary seeds, however. Each seed represented an essential part of our being. There are seven in all, so I decided to take one a week each and share them with you. Perhaps they will inspire you to create your own inner sanctuary and fill it with the seeds of fulfillment and growth.

The first seed is red. It represents the idea of value and security. As we get older, and particularly if we are women, we start to feel as if we no longer have any value in the world. We have retired from our jobs or have lost our jobs to downsizing; our children are grown and out on their own; our spouses or significant others may have passed on, or, long-term relationships have come to an end. Our "worth" was tied to the titles we carried such as mother, wife, employee, etc. When our titles are gone, so is our sense of security. It doesn't always have to do with money, although it can. It's as if we have nothing left to contribute that is considered "worthy."

When we plant the red seed, we are declaring that not only do we have worth, but we are a gold mine of experience, wisdom and creativity. We are the generation that stopped a war, marched for women's rights, civil rights and so much more. We are smart enough and wise enough (although I don't believe smart and wise are always the same thing) to begin a new and exciting journey, to do things we've never had time for before, to see places we've always wanted to see and to learn to value ourselves as the precious spirits we truly are. Value? We are beyond value. We are priceless.

Plant the red seed in your sanctuary. It will grow into something beautiful for you, something that emits the fragrance of just how wonderful you are.

And so it is.