I wasn’t sure what to write about today so I asked my mum the question, “If you were a client of mine, what would you like to know?”

She said quite simply, “What to expect. People may not be sure what box they’re opening.”

She was referring to the process of coaching stirring the vast pot of our locked or stored emotions.

It’s true. This process is not for the faint of heart. You will be challenged, questioned and prodded all in the name of getting to what lies beneath the surface. And what lies beneath has been waiting, longing to be released so that it can make room for joy.

You see, coaching isn’t just about setting goals and ticking boxes on the way to achieving them. It’s about navigating the reasons that may hold you back from ticking those boxes. My coaching is anyway.

From his book, Everyday Osho, Osho describes sadness – the box my mother is referring to – like this, “Sadness gives depth. Happiness gives height. Sadness gives roots. Happiness gives branches. Happiness is like a tree going into the sky, and sadness is like the roots going down into the womb of the earth. Both are needed, and the higher a tree goes, the deeper it goes, simultaneously. The bigger the tree, the bigger will be its roots. In fact, it is always in proportion. That’s its balance.”

To me, the very clear message of this quote is if we choose a life of mediocrity, if we choose a life that doesn’t rock our boat so much, if we choose a life that only makes ripples instead of waves, we will keep our branches small and our roots shallow. We will sail through, sure. But we will not live, grow and thrive. We will not truly feel. We will not understand the pure richness that the real, real highs offer without experiencing the realness of the lows.

Sure, you can avoid them. Avoid the lows. Suppress them, repress them or project them even. But do not expect joy to be waiting. Joy is only on the other side of root cultivation.

I’m willing to dig my roots in. Are you?

With love

Lynda

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