The Practice of “I AM”

If you’re feeling scattered, overwhelmed or if life seems out-of-focus, this is a great practice for you!

At times our lives can feel disjointed and incongruent. This is something we all share and is a natural cycle of our ever-changing world. With the many roles we play and the demands on our attention from the multitude of roles we play, we sometimes forget that at the center, there is an “I” – a central force from which these roles are filled in a way that only we know how. This exercise helps us to shine a light on these many roles (I AM a sister, I AM a Mother, etc.) and invites us to sit in the seat of these roles looking at what they truly represent to us (what is it to be a sister? what does it mean to be a mother?)

By practicing this exercise several things will happen:

• 1) You will have much greater appreciation for each individual role you fill, especially if you let the fullness of each role ripen in your mind and study it from all sides.
• 2) You’ll be calling your scattered energies home and holding them in one central core, this will help you to feel more grounded, more whole and less fragmented.
• 3) You’ll marvel at both the magnificence and complexity of our lives and at just how resilient, adaptable and expansive we really are!

The “How to” practice is below. This could be done in one long meditation period or over the course of a week or more. I suggest my clients do this exercise on a daily basis for at least a week but, for some of you, 30 days might bring the deep transformational results you are seeking. As with anything, the deeper you go, the bigger the results.

Enjoy!

I invite you to stand in the Center of all that is YOU!

Note: the purpose of this practice is not to boost the ego. This is a practice of love, acknowledgment and recognition of the multifaceted beings we are, and is meant to create balance in the body and mind.

How To Practice “I AM.” This practice is simple and powerful and anyone can do it. The key is not to over-think it, just let it come.

-Take out a blank sheet of paper and on the top of it write “I AM” in big bold letters.

-Begin listing all that you are! Include everything your “being” expresses and every role you play. Let your imagination soar. Don’t limit the possibilities.

It might look something like this:

• I am a female
• I am a daughter
• I am a sister
• I am a designer
• I am funny
• I am sassy
• I am a loyal friend
• I am a good listener
• I am expressive
• I am uptight
• I am light
• I am a planner
• I am generous
• I am a gardner
• I am an energetic being
• I am lazy
• etc. etc. etc.

-The list goes on & on until you’ve exhausted all possibilities and then some. Again, don’t hold yourself back, just let it flow.

-Sit for a few moments when you think you are done and review the list, I bet there’s a few things you’ve forgotten about yourself that you’ll want to include like maybe, “I am bright” or “I am artistic,” etc.. Keep probing but not forcing.

-When you feel you are complete (even though the “I am’s” will keep coming while you’re doing the dishes, or in the shower, or driving, or otherwise going about your life) stop and take a deep long breath. Breathe in all that you are! It’s really quite amazing, isn’t it?

-Next step is to stand up and go somewhere you can speak aloud without distraction and without supervision. This exercise is for YOU and doesn’t require a review panel….whew, what a relief!

-While standing, you’ll read aloud all that you are. Use a powerful voice. Own it. Have the “I AM” be strong and solid and say it before every descriptive. Don’t’ be shy…..nobody is watching.

-While claiming all that you are, pause between each descriptive and really feel what it is to be “that”. What is it to be generous? What does that mean to you? What is it to be a female? What does that mean to you? etc.

-At the end, consider the whole all at once, contemplating what it is to be YOU?

-Breathe.

-Take notice of how much stronger you feel. How stable you feel. How “seen” and accepted you feel.

-Breathe again.

-Accept.

-Rejoice.

You are amazing!

This is a powerful practice to do with others. It is a great way to support and acknowledge people in our lives in a loving way. Witnessing each other in this process is beneficial to all involved. We get input about some qualities we may have forgotten and we get to share what we know and appreciate about each other.

This is also a powerful exercise to do in front of a mirror!