Last summer my 22 year old daughter and her friend went to a farmer’s market in Essex, Massachusetts. As they stopped at a table of homemade soaps they talked with the woman there and eventually they asked, as they often do, “what advice do you have for us?” The woman paused, looked them in the eyes and said slowly, “Live your deep yes.”
They brought this story home to me and now I pass it on to you. I hope it makes you pause like it did me and ask yourself, “What is my deep yes?” and “Am I living it? “ As I’ve asked myself these questions this is what I’ve learned: Sometimes my deep yes is scary but it always leads to growth. It means getting on an overnight flight to Europe with a day’s notice to be with a struggling child; saying no to your children; ending a relationship; beginning one; writing that letter to your mother; looking someone in the eyes and saying I love you or I forgive you. These moments bring you to the heart of life, where love is the driving and guiding force; where, if you let it, there is flow and ease.
Last week I stood on the salt flats by the shores of the Great Salt Lake. There was no sign of modern life, only hills behind me, and water and mountains before and around me. There was an eery stillness and silence. But more than that there was a sublime and compelling beauty. The vastness of the lake, the sky, the mountains – they were all so much bigger than I, bigger than my concerns and worries that I held so tightly. As I took it all in I thought, This is what your Deep Yes looks like. Don’t be afraid. Lean in. It’s beautiful.