If your heart had a voice, what would it say?

This is a question I came across in an article on Alison Miller's blog, Live Inspired. The crux of the article was that the vast majority of us do not give our hearts the attention they deserve, in the sense that we don't listen to them. In Eastern philosophy the heart is a storehouse of intelligence and insight, yet the heart is usually dismissed as being 'emotional' and we listen to our minds for guidance instead. The problem with this is that listening to the mind generally leads us to feeling scattered and confused - something I am present to more and more in my own life. More and more I am feeling the need for stillness, clarity and peace in order to really understand myself and to make decisions in my life that reflect who I want to be and how I want to live. But because I am still deferring to my mind instead of taking the time to listen to my heart, I cannot find the clarity, peace or stillness I seek.

If I know what I need to do, and know what is not working for me, then why do I continue to tread the same path you ask? (Just as I ask myself.....). Well, probably because listening to your heart requires one to be still. To meditate. To slow down and shut out all the other noise that is going on 24/7 in your head - and that is the challenge at hand for me. I would also hazard to guess that there is a part of me that doesn't want to face what my heart is actually saying.... that I'm scared to hear it and deal with the possible pain and emotion that will come along with it. Having said this, I am committed to going there because I know I won't be able to move forward and live a life I love until I can be open to being loved. Yes, that is my answer to the question at the start of this post. I have been still long enough in the past few weeks to hear that my heart has been saying for the past 26 odd years "I can't be loved. I'm different. No-one would love me unconditionally. In order to be loved or to receive love I need to give up something, to lose myself." I am currently working on how to change this belief because I want to be open to being loved and to experience being loved for exactly who I am, without the fear of losing myself in the process. I want the voice of my heart to speak excitedly, openly and freely. And so from this night onwards I am committing to making time each night before I go to sleep to sit quietly so that I can hear the gentle promptings and feel the intuitive feelings of my heart - to hear the voice of my heart and to be open to being loved.......