28 August 2009
Emotions: Portals to Soul
Posted by Robin Easton under: Hobnobbin' with Robin .
Four Portals to Awareness:
This is part three of a four part series titled Four Portals to Awareness. Last week we looked at the need to Slow Down (click), stop our speeding cars, get out and look at our maps so we know where we’re headed. This week we look at the connection between emotions and soul.
Part Three – Experience Emotions:
“Glorious Rivers of emotion are the lifeblood of the soul. When we respond to life with heartfelt gritty emotions, we have within our grasp the raw crude material that forges great lives and creates whole galaxies”. ~ Copyright: Robin Easton
Emotions are motion, and like a river they can carry our souls through deep murky waters to a place of great understanding and clarity. They are amazing portals to awareness. It’s why I believe we must allow ourselves to explore our emotions without judgment. In doing so we become adventurous spelunkers traveling into the abysmal canyons of our souls. To know our own soul is to know the soul of the world.
Some of us need something more than sitting in a counselor’s office and “talking about” feelings, trying to understand them with our minds. This can help, but some people have vast untamed emotions that seek expression. Their feelings must be experienced. It’s how many people learn and grow, through total body experience and knowing.
“There can be no knowledge without emotion. We may be aware of a truth, yet until we have felt its force, it is not ours. To the cognition of the brain must be added the experience of the soul.” ~ Arnold Bennett
Usually we aren’t taught how to track our feelings. We seem more comfortable working things out with our brains or doing things that help us deal with, fix, make go away or control our feelings. There are times when this is very necessary and a useful skill to learn, but all too often we parch our souls by robbing them of emotional rivers.
So how do we know when to pull ourselves together and stop wallowing in emotions and when to let ourselves sink into the pithy experience of grief, anger or fear? And what is the difference between exploring our emotions and dumping our pain on another person, under the pretense of exploring? I’ve found that with time we learn to recognize these differences. When we constructively experience emotions it doesn’t mean we can’t feel the supposed “bad” feelings such as jealousy, anger, hate, resentment, self-pity and so forth. It simply means we must take full responsibility for all of our feelings by realizing that everything we feel is ours. We also set a conscious intent to explore them with respect to those around us.
Some people walk around living their feelings in an unconscious destructive way. They vent anger, self-pity and so forth on their family, friends and co-workers. Yes, they’re feeling their emotions, but not in a conscious way with the intent to own and better understand them. It’s important to be brutally honest with ourselves so that we recognize the difference between “exploring” emotions and “dumping” on others, so that we know when we’re wallowing and when we are learning.
Emotions are fascinating experiences. I’ve spent most of my life actively exploring my emotions, right down to wailing, sobbing and expressing outrage, but all done in a sacred space, with respect to others and the intent to explore. At the age of twenty-five I consciously chose to live an experiential and emotion-filled life. I wanted to know through and through the human condition, not merely something I read in a book or some uplifting spiritual belief that I tried to grasp with my head. Uplifting our spirits definitely has a place in our lives, but not at the expense of the soul.
“Following your feelings will lead you to their source. Only through emotions can you encounter the force field of your own soul.” ~ Gary Zukav
My culture is geared toward avoiding the “underworld” of soul, the abysmal emotions and unknown depths, which are filled with primal urges, memories and absolute knowing. It’s where soul thrives. It’s where soul goes to “re-member” itself, heal and ultimately find peace. And it’s where I find my truest self, my greatest passion and creativity, my connection to all life. Soul goes into the dark to find light, into the emptiness to become full, into the chaos to discover resolution and peace, and into the endless unknown to finally and fully “know”.
“In the last decade or so, science has discovered a tremendous amount about the role emotions play in our lives. Researchers have found that even more than IQ, your emotional awareness and abilities to handle feelings will determine your success and happiness in all walks of life, including family relationships.” ~ John Gottman, Ph.D.
Next week we will “Dare to Take Risks.”
Bless you my friends; you are some of my greatest teachers.
Love,
Robin
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Related Links:
Turn off the Bombardment – Robin Easton – Naked in Eden
Can you slow down – Robin Easton – Naked in Eden
The Deep River Within – Author Abby Seixas
This Site: © Robin Easton
Website: http://www.nakedineden.com
Blog: http://nakedineden.com/nakedinedenblog/
33 Comments so far...
Bren Parks Says:
28 August 2009 at 12:14 pm.
I really enjoyed your blog! Nice work my friend!
Robin Replies
Hi Bren, Welcome to Eden and thank you for taking the time to stop in. Your kind words touch my heart. 
[Reply]
Mihaela Lica Says:
28 August 2009 at 12:52 pm.
This is much better in Romanian, but here it goes…
Feel the rain within your heart (crying doesn’t take it out)
while from time to time the wind blows a sin inside your veins
pushing hard upon your soul like a fist of dirty steel.
And you wonder on your way who’s the one seeding the sins
who’s the one leading your steps on the path to death and dark?
And the answer? You know why.
Now you long for forest green and for fertile soils to find
perfect spots for your poor roots hurt and fragile, as they are.
Sunrise doesn’t bring you joy when you fear the crack of dawn
and the sunset seems for you as the last curse brought along
to embrace your lonely dreams on the waters of the Styx.
Isn’t that your deepest wish?
Sunset is what you desire and you watch the darkness fall
with a smile, one of the few… Way too much, or way too slow
were you drinking poisoned wine. And you drink it every day. . .
Every day, because you know that the darkness fall can melt
in a crazy dream just if you can drink the venom now,
let it take you on its wings and then drink it once again
when the thirst conquers the pain.
Can’t you just forgive yourself?
I hope it’s not too sad to be here, Robin. You always share so much joy.
Robin Replies
My dear Mihaela, I read this and cried. Not because it made me feel sad. No. It made me feel ALIVE and beautiful, because the whole poem is alive with emotion. That is what makes it beautiful for me. Your writing (even translated from Romanian to English) is beauty laid bare, stripped down to it’s essential core. This is exactly what I was talking about when I say Soul loves the pithy underworld of deep dark tangled emotions. It loves the tears and very REAL feelings we all carry inside us. Although most of us carry them buried they are still there. It is refreshing for me to see that your feelings are NOT buried. I love that in a person. I have lived a hundred lifetimes in one and felt soooo many emotions that I embrace this poem with wide open arms, my friend. It is beautiful like you. I am very pleased that you shared it here. I never could have imagined anything this profound. You are a gifted writer. I hope I get to see more sometime. Thank you from my heart. PS: I am “joyous” BECAUSE I’ve allowed myself to explore ALL emotions and now am very comfortable with myself and life.
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Sara Says:
28 August 2009 at 1:56 pm.
Robin — It’s been way too long since I visited! I thought this was a great post, especially since, like you, I’ve spent a long time learning the various ebbs and flows of my emotions. I was especially taken with this line of your post, “…all too often we parch our souls by robbing them of emotional rivers.”
Coming from a family that didn’t share emotions very well, I was taught from an early age that being emotional wasn’t a good trait. I’m now 57 and I have learned my family was wrong. Granted, I do have to be careful not to let my emotions carry me like a rip tide, but most of the time, I have great respect for my own personal “emotional rivers.”
I will have to the come back and read part one! Thanks for this post :~)
Robin Replies
Heeeey Dear Sara, Such joy to see you here. Thank you for your kind words and appreciating my tendency toward poetry. I think many of us are taught that emotions are “bad” or “shameful” and something to be “got over”…as opposed to them being a fundamental part of who we are, part of the world we live in. As to stuffing emotions down: I look around and see people “dumping” emotions like vomit in a hospital ward full of flu patients, and it is all too often accepted as normal behavior. So obviously stifling our emotions does not work. They tend to come out in ways that cause pain and chaos in our lives and the lives of those we love…and into the world in general. It is SO lovely to hear from you. Thank YOU, Sara.
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Liara Covert Says:
28 August 2009 at 4:32 pm.
Emotions are the reliable gauge to discern the state of one’s energy vibration. Lower, denser energies are associated with negative emotions whereas uplifting energy links to loving vibes. One can always change. Your insight into emotions here enriches the collective understanding.
Love the Gary Zukav quote. His books on soul journeying are timeless resources that empower and enthrall.
Congratulations on the Naked in Eden book project! Every step you take quietly enriches others and encourages others to take steps to empower and expand the inner self. Nemaste!
Robin Replies
Dear Liara, Thank you for you kind encouragement re: book. It is an exciting project. Also, I agree that emotions can be a great gauge for determining our state of being. I tend to see ALL emotions as simply energy, neither positive nor negative. I have found that some of our greatest sense of self or inner power can come from anger or rage. NOW, what I mean by that is this: one might feel intense anger and, for me, their anger is simply energy, neither positive or negative, neither dense or light, simply energy. BUT it is what we DO with that energy. If you read EarthMother45’s comment it is a prime example of this.
When I was 25 years old I had months of flashbacks into my childhood (in the rainforest). I went through a stage where I found huge amounts of rage moving through me. Since I didn’t judge this as either negative or positive I was able to simply explore or track it. I would go to a safe place where no one heard me and literally vent (out loud) what came up in me, exactly as I felt it, no censoring, no shame, no context. Well, I went on a huge soul journey with that rage and it was far from dense energy, but instead uplifting. It was a vehicle that took me back through my life to when I was an infant left in the crib for long periods of time (my mother was suffering postpartum depression and left me in the crib for hours and hours). I remembered almost dying from a “cot death” (heart attack coming on, suffocation, etc.) and as a 1 year old baby I worked out that if I stayed in a state of constant pure organic rage it kept my body pumped full of adrenalin and hence kept me alive. If that infant girl had laid down in resignation she would have died. I also learned that I became addicted to adrenalin. So at 26 years old I broke my adrenalin addiction as it (and the rage) was no longer needed to keep me alive.
An example: Some one with a knife might use anger, hate, violence to attack an innocent child. Yes, that feels about as dense as it gets. AND YET, a bystander witnessing this attack might be overcome with rage at what she is seeing and use her rage/energy to fearlessly charge the child abuser — knife and all — and protect the innocent child.
Anger and even rage do not necessarily hold a negative place in our lives, they can at times keep us alive. They can at times be our impetus to act, to change, to grow, to move, to gather our courage and shift to a complete new reality. I often feel that my culture has traded it’s healthy outrage for complacency, which can be another often more destructive form of rage. It is what we DO with that unbridled energy. All energy is simply energy. It is like clay on a potter’s wheel and we are the potter who can push, bend and shape the clay. The clay in and of itself is benign. HOWEVER, there may be a distinction here. Maybe it is when we do destructive things with energy that we feel it’s density. I know that decades ago I felt a loss of soul when I did not mold my clay, but let it to fly randomly out of control across the wheel splattering me and others with mud and mess. That loss of soul left me with a very dense feeling. We literally are shaping our lives and the Universe.
Maybe you would like to shed added light on this. My words here are only one tiny facet of a HUGE topic. I actually write about this in my second book (working on it now) in much more depth, but this may spark some ideas that you and others can share with us. Thank you SO much for inspiring me and so many others. You truly are a treasure.
[Reply]
Walter Says:
28 August 2009 at 6:13 pm.
I only scream and climb the walls when I am alone. I wold love to download on some willing soul, and expose the demons that torment me so. But that has proven to be more difficult than you could imagine. People look to me for strength and courage. When I expose my flaws and weaknesses, those that are close to me seem to go into denial, as if I were talking about the man in the moon. Perhaps a few moments of stunned silence at best. It would seem that they all want to think I am an impervious rock. The fact that I’m only a pile of drifting sand is beyond their ability to conceive.
Robin Replies
Hi Dear Walter, it’s always so good to see you here. I think you should still follow your heart and explore this unbridled part of yourself. It what makes you SO unique and free thinking. Even if you do it on your own. Although, I do relate to it being nice to share it with another. I am blessed to have several friends who are open to exploring with me. Maybe you just need to find more adventurous souls who are like you. You are very adventurous, Walt. It’s finding the ones who are also ‘looking’. I also hear you about exposing your flaws and weaknesses. I think the reaction you get is quite common in American culture and many other parts of the world. Some people are terrified of their own emotions/soul and to see another soul being open or expressive reminds them of what they are tying to keep at bay. Since you are a maverick you may be the one leading in the Dance of Souls. You may not find the reflection you seek and may have to create it by being what you really are, which is bold. You may rattle some cages, but in doing so you may be a saving grace for others. They just don’t yet know it. You have great power in you, Walt (I’ve seen it), and that power can be used to change the world around you. It helps if we remind ourselves that we don’t have to drop to another’s way of being; we get to invite the world to rise up and meet us at OUR doorstep. I wish you well in your great quest my dear friend.
[Reply]
Lance Says:
28 August 2009 at 7:23 pm.
Robin,
Earlier this week, while out in the early morning hours on a bike ride through the woods, my mind wandered to the thought of my own death. I pictured in my mind, myself on my deathbed. And this whole process brought a swell of emotions. As I thought about what really mattered in life, what counts, what life is really about – I was moved deeply, and felt it very much in the depths of my heart. This is not someplace I often go – and in fact, I tried to get back to that same spot later in the day to experience it more deeply – and it just wasn’t there. When it was, though, the emotions of that very moment were without a doubt taking me to deep within my soul. And it was both difficult and freeing. Difficult in that I was facing my own mortality. And freeing in that my heart, it felt so free at that moment. A weird sensation, and a good one. A very good one.
Robin, it’s not all that often that I reach a spot like that which I did earlier this week. When I do, I feel so much the depth of our souls. And I’ve found, as I let myself be more real, I also open that portal up more too…
Robin Replies
Dear Lance, I am always SO moved by your earnestness here on these pages. It’s like I feel your heart, your core essence as if you sat here beside me in my office. You bring up a VERY important topic: full awareness of death. When I was living in the rainforest at one point (age 26 or 27) I worked out that in running from the reality of death there was more chance I would waste my life by not fully living, and/or I would die sooner by not taking good care of myself (health). One day I saw that Death was my treasured adviser, a reality to be embraced. I chose to let Death sit on my shoulder to remind me to FULLY live. When we embrace the reality of Death we embrace fully the reality of Life, Death reminds us to live.
What I also found interesting is that your experience happened in the woods. Nature created a portal for you to travel into other world/insights. And the woods where you live are SO lovely and green, rich with abundant life. It is no coincidence that you would feel an awareness of Death and hunger for Life in such a beautiful place. When we feel how desperately we want to live, we feel how desperately we don’t want to die (or vice versa). When I walk amongst towering trees I often weep from the sheer magnitude of their life force….and I want to NEVER die. So in that moment I am reminded of both my mortality and my hunger to live. I want to soak in Life as if my life depended on it. It DOES. I encourage you to follow these deep soul hungers and insights that you have Lance. They are stunningly beautiful and the core of who you really are. Your soul shines my friend.
[Reply]
Website Design Sydney Says:
28 August 2009 at 9:11 pm.
Really nice & well written post,
Thanks.
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earthmother Says:
28 August 2009 at 9:25 pm.
When I was younger, I used to be very scared of my emotions. Especially the “bad” ones like anger. Too much. Too big. Best to keep it contained. And then a very wise teacher told me that Emotions are simply Energy in Motion. Hmmm, when I thought of it that way, I realized that I had a lot of stuck energy sitting inside me. How to move it?
One day, I sat down at a djembe, an African drum. I had never played before, but my intention was to MOVE this stuck energy in my body. I placed my hands on the drum and closed my eyes. And out it all came. I have no idea how long I played. I was transported out of time. I laughed. I cried. My whole upper body moved to the beat of the drum. And when my hands finally came to rest and I opened my eyes, I realized that a whole throng of people had gathered around, drawn by the rhythm, transported by the energy in motion. It was an extremely healing experience, the first of many. Everyone wanted to know, “Where did you learn to play like that?” Ha! Isn’t that funny?
When we allow the energy (ie. emotion) to move through us, magic happens.
Robin Replies
Dear EarthMother, What a powerful comment and experience. I am So glad you took the time to share it. It goes so well with the response I left on Liara Covert’s comment. I responded to her comment with, “I tend to see ALL emotions as simply energy, neither positive nor negative.” You can read the rest of what I wrote beneath her comment. But I LOVE what you shared about your drumming experience. It just thrilled me as I too have had this experience (not with drumming) but with running (jogging) up a mountain many years ago,and a couple of times while banging wildly and passionately away on the piano until great streams of music came out of me and shifted the energy (or got it moving), until I was sometimes laughing with joy or sobbing with great release. Either way I created some astounding music or felt transformed. Drumming is something I would love to try as it has enormous potential to heal and shift all kinds of energy and create “altered” states as well. I LOVE your line: “When we allow the energy (ie. emotion) to move through us, magic happens.” Especially if we can do this with conscious intent and without judgment of any kind, simply journeying with where it takes us. The possibilities for growth and experience are endless. —Thank you sooooo much for sharing the excellent example. I just love it.
[Reply]
Robb Says:
28 August 2009 at 9:39 pm.
Kia ora Wild Sister,
Opening my heart and soul to the wild has also enabled me to unravel and unroot so many emotions I carried with me for so long, hurt, anger, fear, and also love, laughter, compassion and caring. It has enabled me to get beyond myself, to consider things I might not have before, or in a different way perhaps. I guess Robin that I am just a work in progress. Kia ora to you and the others who comment here for helping me to consider and learn. Rave on Wild Sister!
Aroha,
Robb
Robin Replies
Dear Wild Brother, When I wrote this post I thought of you. I honestly did. I thought of that first day many ago when you were hurting so badly you went into the mountains, sat by the river and started to cry and cry. Everything in you cracked open and out came beautiful Robb. It was only the beginning of your your love affair with the Ruahines and your love affair with yourself and Life. But man, you sure took the ball and ran with it. You and Nature have been emoting together ever since. I see it in EVERY single one of your posts..even when you don’t directly state it. I am the same. I go to nature, sink humbled to my knees on Old Mother Earth and cry and laugh and love and weep with compassion, loss, joy and more. And she absorbs it all with open arms, no judgment and the purest compassion I’ve ever known in my life. I know you understand. I think for both you and me Nature saved our souls. And we have become — and probably always were — the soul of the Earth and she the soul of us. But aren’t we all? I am blessed and honored to walk with you Wild Brother. I am much stronger for you presence in the world. Aroha, Robin
[Reply]
Steven Aitchison Says:
28 August 2009 at 11:34 pm.
You have a very rare ability to touch the very heart of the human soul and I am now a long time fan and I have only read a few posts. Actually – I’ve just gone and watched a few of your video’s and you’re barking mad Now an even bigger fan.
Robin Replies
Dear Steven, what a JOY to see you here. I so loved your interview with Jonathan the other day. Excellent!! I am touched by both your insight and your very kind words here, because I could say the same about you. You insights and compassion are very refreshing. —-RE: My videos — Oh yeeeeessss…..my videos! LOL! Sooooo? You saw those, did you? Well, all I can say is: Yup, you’re right I am “barking mad” and loving every single minute of it. Life is short my friend and must be VERY fully lived. So I experience as much as I can. Thank you Steven.
[Reply]
Stephen - Rat Race Trap Says:
29 August 2009 at 8:08 am.
Robin dear:
“Let’s not forget that the little emotions are the great captains of our lives and we obey them without realizing it.: –Vincent Van Gogh
This statement by you is key:
“all too often we parch our souls by robbing them of emotional rivers.”
This is a lesson I’ve had to learn as I’ve “matured” I don’t really care what others think. I’ve decided to let me be me.
Can’t wait until part IV!
Robin Replies
Dear Stephen, This quote by Van Gogh is brilliant. I’d not yet seen it. It’s very punchy powerful when you slow down and really take in the ramifications of what he is saying. —One think I also love about “maturing” is that something shifts in us (if we are blessed) and we start to really see the bigger picture. We know what is vitally important in life and we prioritize accordingly. And one of those things can be that we really don’t care anymore what others think of us. We find it much more important to know what WE care about us. There is big difference. Thanks for stopping by my friend. It’s always rewarding.
[Reply]
Evita Says:
29 August 2009 at 9:01 am.
This is amazing Robin – this series is like a fresh wind flowing in and just nurturing our souls to feel safe to be the most they can be, to open up and to connect.
It wasn’t until a few years ago, that I found out about the power of our emotions. Until then, they were what they were – just there. But since, I pay great attention to them, for I have come to realize that this is how our souls communicate. This is also that sacred space from which we can learn so much about ourselves.
As Steve above said, “you DO have a very rare ability to touch the very heart of the human soul” and for that I thank you so much, because I love sharing the world and life with you Robin
Many hugs!!!
Robin Replies
Dear Evita, It’s so funny because your comment always make me feel exactly how you described me in this comment: “…like a fresh wind flowing…” I always have that sense of you as if you just blew in from a clean clear mountain top. Needless to say, I am very touched and encouraged by your words. It’s been interesting doing this Portals series as it’s kind of written me instead of me writing it. I love that experience and it’s how almost all my writing happens, but has been more so with this series. I guess maybe you and Steve picked up on something in me that is sooooo dear to my heart. Talking or writing about soul puts me truly in my element. I just thrive there. —I love this insight of yours when referring to emotions: “…this is how our souls communicate.” This is so very wise dear Evita. Yes, I agree. We not only communicate with our most authentic selves, but with each other, all life and the Infinite Universe. And yes, MANY hugs back to your dear.
[Reply]
Liara Covert Says:
29 August 2009 at 3:30 pm.
Robin, energy does indeed take different forms and it also assumes formless states. You can choose not to label it and simply feel. The conscious mind is often conditioned to interpret higher vibrations as positive, pleasurable feelings. Lower energy vibrations trigger restlessness and denser feelings. A person is always free to retrain the mind. Every person has a private experience. Energy is resonating through every human being every moment. You can decide all is healed, all is well and no such thing as judgment exists. You go deeper within when ready.
Robin Replies
Thank you dear Liara, I agree. And I love this line as it is how I choose to see/live Life: “You can decide all is healed, all is well and no such thing as judgment exists.”
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ZuzannaM Says:
29 August 2009 at 7:26 pm.
Dear Robin
Thank you so much for the thought provoking article.
Emotions are like a roller coaster, one has to learn how to recognize the state of feelings. Our thoughts will create the mood, those will reflect on actions. Often time person has to stop and think of next move, gather emotions and take control of the situation. Life can offer different emotional state at any time. There will be an ocean of emotions if we allow them to pour straight from the heart. Someone who is emotional by nature feelings as those mentioned earlier can trigger different reactions. I have noticed that when one does not want others know of the true feelings they can wear a smile. Dealing with emotions was not always easy.
Emotions are important to every human being. With emotional state, we are able to express feelings of love, sorrow, dislikes, pain, frustration or anger, sadness or happiness. We are able to function better knowing how to solve our own issues if we know the base and what causes the reaction to that.
From your article, I learned that emotions are important and integral to our well-being.
It is a great pleasure to read your blog; you have done a fabulous job!
Thank you,
Zuzanna
Robin Replies
Dearest Zuzanna, You are all heart my friend. I agree with you that emotions can be so many things and bring about so many reactions. I think the more we embrace our emotions and are willing to explore them the better we are able CHOOSE how we want to react. Even if we have an initial reaction, if we stay aware and conscious, we can always rethink that reaction and choose another. Also it you are very wise when you say that if we what causes our reaction. I think this is key. I am always honored by your kind, wise and loving presence here. You have a deep wellspring of compassion and insight to offer the world. Thank YOU dear friend.
[Reply]
Jonathan - Advanced Life Skills Says:
29 August 2009 at 8:43 pm.
I think that the key to personal power lies in the ability to fully experience the depth of our emotions, while also being able to choose what direction to channel them. With proper direction, emotions become the most powerful motivating force we have. However, without direction they can become our worst and most destructive enemy. Like the steering wheel in a 500 hp race car, we can use our minds to gently guide our emotions on our chosen path.
Robin Replies
Dear Jonathan, I love this comment. Not only the part about fully experiencing the DEPTH of our emotions, but the whole point you make about channeling our emotional energy. It was such a huge insight for me at age 26 when I realized that powerful emotions moving through me weren’t “bad”, what really mattered was how I channeled that powerful energy. Even if it was anger, I saw that it was simply energy that I had control over and could choose how I wanted to direct it. Once I saw it as simply “power”, I was able to use it to heal, to charge my life, my spirit and more….and the anger aspect simply vanished.
[Reply]
Plastic Mancunian Says:
30 August 2009 at 5:10 am.
Hi Robin,
I’m an emotional person but not an “openly” emotional person. I feel and experience the full range of emotions in my emotion-library at some point but rather than expressing myself to members of the general public I tend to cover them up with an emotionless mask giving the impression that I am in a neutral mood. Besides I don’t think an elderly stranger would appreciate me walking up to him and saying “I’m Dave – and I’m annoyed!!!”.
However, when I get home or find myself alone, I unleash them into my world and let my imagination take control of them.
Fear not, though – I don’t have a padded cell at home where I vent my spleen if I’m angry – I simply allow my emotions to take control. Actually, that’s not the whole truth – I do allow Mrs PM to see my emotions (she has the key to my soul anyway so it’s very difficult to hide from her).
For example, if somebody makes me angry, I will express that anger briefly before opening a mental box and putting it away. When I am alone I open the box and let the full force of my fury explode. The cats are the only witnesses usually – they’re used to my ranting now and simply leave the house (”Oh dear – somebody’s annoyed him again – I’m outta here!”).
I hate negative emotion and try to keep them in check. Positive emotions, however, escape from their mental box pretty quickly. I can’t keep them cooped up – they don’t deserve to be. They should be unleashed. If you’re happy – show it, I say.
My emotions to tend to appear in my writing, though. If I’m angry I switch into a kind of trance and write away the bitterness. Sometimes when I reread the angry bilge I’ve written I am shocked – but not completely surprised. That keeps my emotions in check to a degree as well. I think I would rather write about my emotions and let them guide my writing than take them out on another person (”dumping them” as you say).
So I’m not sure whether I’ve passed this particular portal of awareness, Robin. Maybe I have, maybe I haven’t.
But I do agree that it is imperative that you understand your emotions and allow them to guide you on your crazy journey through the madness that is life. My soul is a smorgasbord of weirdness and emotions do help to keep it flying on the right path, rather than veering off into oblivion.
:0)
Cheers
PM
Robin Replies
My Dear PM, Am I laughing? Yes, of course. How could not? You are priceless. I love the line: “My soul is a smorgasbord of weirdness…” LOLOL You are a gem. You know you really confirmed what I kind of sensed from your blog. I REALLY believe that for you, your emotions, especially your frustration, any anger, etc. and the WAY that you deal with them through writing are KEY to your creativity. You are a brilliant writer and have a way of expressing things we ALL feel, like the driving/being in traffic post you did awhile back. That was SO hilarious and yet SO honest. Who could not relate to it?!! Everyone did. And so in essence you are able to find humor in your frustration or anger and instead of venting on others you turn into delightful works of art that we all relate to. And that makes the rest of us feel more human and we tend to not berate ourselves for any anger or frustration that we too might feel. We are a bit kinder on ourselves. So my witty friend, I have to say that you have not only hung in through 3 of the four portals, but you’ve done so with flying colors. You are honest, warm and funny and I SO admire that. Thank you.
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Wilma Ham Says:
30 August 2009 at 10:37 pm.
Wow, wild sister indeed and I love every bit of you. Hi Robin, wonderful, wonderful, wonderful.
And the responses that you have unleashed, sheer poetry. Emotions are welling up from the heart, like a wave that cannot be stopped. I have been afraid of them because they showed me an honest view of the world and at times I did not know what to do with them. What could I do with emotions in a concrete city, in an apartment building?
But boy, now I live in the same place as Robb, with nature all around me, let the emotions flow and let me flow with them. They are the spices to a dish, they are life and love.
I have to be careful that I do not mistake my heart emotions from my mind ones. The mind ones are calculated like fear and are based on nothing, just illusions. In nature I do get frights though, in the moment and they pass. Some waves have scared me in my little sea kayak, but fearing them behind my computer????
I loved the drum story by earthmother too, how absolutely delightful and may we all drum like that at least once.
Robin Replies
Dear Wilma, this comment is SO beautiful and pithy, just as you are. Thank you for your very high praise and such open love. I feel the same strong love and same kindred-ness with you. —You are so right about the responses here. I am just invigorated and inspired and moved by them. You would love Robb’s site. He, like you, has a wide open heart and is passionate about life and nature and very honest. Here is the link to his site: Musings from Aotearoa
There really is something about being in Nature. She really does invite us to to let down, feel and love and long for more of both. And your awareness of recognizing the difference between heart emotions and mind ones is very astute and powerful. Yes, I too have had frights in Nature but they are indeed different from a mind fright. They pass and we learn; they uncomplicated and SO VERY clean. We know where we stand in Nature. I did not know you Kayaked. That is SOOOOO exciting! I am looking into Kayaks right now as I want to run some of the rivers here and eventually the sea as well. I love the idea of being SO close to the water. Wilma, you are SUCH a joy and I am so honored to have you in my life. You are the “real deal” my friend. Thank you for that. PS And yes, wasn’t EarthMother’s experience wonderful. I too love that story.
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Greg Says:
31 August 2009 at 10:37 am.
Wow, how do you always do this? I surf in here after not visiting in so long and you’re talking about my weekend. : ) Glad to stop back in to see what you were up to. By the way, I’ve been to the beach recently, and the Atlantic says “hey.”
Robin Replies
My dear sweet friend, How are you?? I just smiled so BIG when I saw you here. So you had an emotional weekend? I will have to stop by as now I’m curious. I’m SO touched that no matter how often or “not often” we connect we are ALWAYS connected. That is SO beautiful and warms my heart no end. So you’ve been down to the sea, eh? Aaah, yes, you remembered me and now pass on the message. I am tickled pink by that. You actually remembered!! Wow! You are the BEST!! Tell the Atlantic I miss it’s raw beauty. Make sure you say “hi” from Robin.
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Shirley Says:
31 August 2009 at 10:46 am.
Wonderful post. I don’t know what it is about this post. From the beginning I sense a strong Native American kind of influence.
“how do we know when to pull ourselves together and stop wallowing in emotions and when to let ourselves sink into the pithy experience of grief, anger or fear?” I truly think it depends on the situation. Sometimes, even now, I mourn the loss of my grandmother. I don’t allow myself to dwell on her when I have things to do. Then, even through good memories, it sometimes happens.
“And what is the difference between exploring our emotions and dumping our pain on another person, under the pretense of exploring?” I explore my emotions through writing/ blogging. It’s your choice to join or not. I don’t typically allow myself to wallow in self pity in front of others unless I can bring awareness of something I feel strongly for and even then I don’t think I have pretenses.
Robin Replies
Dear Shirley, this very thought-filled what you’ve expressed here. One of the things I’ve learned about you is that you have a great balance of being upset about something (usually some injustice in the world) and you can be VERY blunt and honest about how you feel about it and yet not at all rude or mean spirited. You are very good at being honest but not mean. I like that. In fact I think it si one of your gifts as it allows you to shed light on injustice in a way that people can absorb. And I don’t see self-pity as your thing either. You have taken EVERYTHING life as thrown at you an simply used it to grow stronger, wiser and more loving. I was touched by the mention of your grandmother. I think that is a beautiful part of you (that you miss her). There is strong (beyond death) connection there. It feels very right, and yet you don’t let it drag you down. You wise beyond you years. But then you always were.
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Nothing profound Says:
31 August 2009 at 4:37 pm.
I think it’s important to distinguish between those feelings that arise from our experience of life and those that are created by our thoughts. The first are spontaneous and enlivening, a true response to the world; the second imprison us in our tiny shell of self.
Robin Replies
Dear NothingProfound, I think you and Wilma Ham (see her comment) are talking about a very similar experience here. I found it interesting that you both thought of this. —For one called “NothingPorfound” I’ve found you to be consistently profound. ) Thank you for your insights here. There are very appreciated.
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Evita Says:
31 August 2009 at 7:52 pm.
Thank you Robin, for that beautiful reply on top of it all…
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Dorothy Stahlnecker Says:
31 August 2009 at 11:05 pm.
Reading about emotions tonight almost made me fearful of the power they have on us. I remember being told to control my emotions and when you understand what your trying to say it explains the importance of doing the opposite thank you for helping me recognize that by feeling all my emotions, I have the capacity to break down many of the walls I’ve built throughout my life. I’ve been so filled with life, the good and bad and the ugly that it’s been automatic to put up the wall instead of feeling the emotion tied to the event and of course it’s not always healthy.
Thus, blessings for my awakening to feelings and emotions and what it can do for my soul and mental health..
Dorothy from grammology
grammology.com
Robin Replies
Dear earnest Dorothy, I just LOVE the honesty in this heartfelt comment. I think many people are afraid of being overwhelmed by emotions. Part of that may come from the fact that all our lives we are taught that emotions are innapropriate, something to be contained and got under control. In school, society, church, wherever…we are taught that you do NOT express even slight emotion, let alone blatant emotion. Many of were taught that stoicism and rigid control were something to be proud of. But slowly the times change and hopefully we don’t say to quite as many little boys when they cry: “Big boys don’t cry.” “Don’t be a cry baby.” “Do you want your mother, teacher, friends, father, etc, to see you crying like this?”
Also, the beautiful thing about emotions is that no matter HOW long we have denied their existence or stuffed them down, when we are ready to access and explore them, they are still there imprinted upon us…as far back as infancy and beyond, as far back as we want to explore. Emotions are like a river that can lead us through the jungle of our lives, often more easily than bushwhacking through dense brush. Thank you for baring your soul; it’s a truly beautiful one.
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starflight/marcel lemieux Says:
1 September 2009 at 3:09 am.
What awesome article and wonderful comments here…so many avenues about emotions and feelings…i know i had my full share of it like many …been torn to pieces and walk out of it alive…i have cried rivers of tears and had nights of fright that you can only imagine in a nightmare ….it was only later in life that i,ve learned that emotions , feelings, sensitivity and innocence are very important and bring awareness and understanding… today, i,m glad i can say yes or no to all kind of situations, which i think is a great gift. Many emotions can be a bit disturbing or just way to overloaded, but i remain the boss, not repressing or hiding or occulting them, but choosing what i want to live or react to….. Growing up is a very unique experience.. The heart and soul have their say also!…..
Robin Replies
My dear Soul Brother, I almost didn’t see your comment. Wow! Your are NOT one to be missed. Your insights are way too juicy. Thank you for your kind words here. You know they touch my heart. I always love the depth with which you have lived and continue to live your life. It is so gutsy and fully lived. I also love that you have cried rivers and had “nights of fright”. Do you know why? Because it makes you one of the richest souls I know. I mean, you are one “full-on” human being. You embrace life with gusto, with every fiber of your being. You embrace every moment until you become the moment. This is something I resonate with completely. When you describe your life I often feel as if you are talking about my life in terms of its intensity and emotion and experiences. So fully lived. I think you are really right about reaching a place in our lives where we choose what we want to live and react to. It’s not that we won’t always have emotions or that things won’t happen that trigger them; it’s that we are the Captains of our ships and we choose how we want to react, if at all. I am so blessed to know you.
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Julie Says:
1 September 2009 at 6:17 pm.
Robin, it’s simply impossible for me to hide my feelings. You said “some people have vast untamed emotions that seek expression. Their feelings must be experienced. It’s how many people learn and grow, through total body experience and knowing.” This is so true for me; but even beyond that, it’s central to being in the state of being. It’s as Evita said, “…this is how our souls communicate.” While she meant with each other and the world around us, for me it’s also how I communicate with the moment. My emotions ground me to the moment I’m experiencing, allowing me to fully integrate the experience in all my being. And so then we’re right back to your “knowing.” It’s a beautiful circle.
I just love how your posts provide me a lovely spot in the day for deeper reflection. Thank you, my wise and magical friend! While Evita’s a fresh breeze (and I agree she is!), you are water which nourishes and enriches our lives.
Love,
~ Julie
Robin Replies
Dear Julie, Geez, YOU emotional?!! Noooo! LOLOL!! I love what you wrote about about emotions being “how you communicate with the moment.” I totally understand what you are saying here as it is the same for me. Emotions keep me FULLY plugged into this moment and everything it entails, the totality of this precious single moment. I BECOME the moment. A friend of mine once said to me: “You allow yourself to SO fully live in the moment that you don’t even hang onto things. You feel everything as you experience, right now. There is no back log in you.” And yes, it is a BEAUTIFUL circle. It is being fully present and open to the world in a very visceral way. —Also dear Julie, I am SOOO touched by your words: “you are water which nourishes and enriches our lives.” If Evita is fresh breeze and I am nourishing water, you are like the most abundant spring-time, with all of it’s bursting vitality. Love, Robin
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Liara Covert Says:
1 September 2009 at 7:52 pm.
Everything you know deeply inside is fundamentally based on experience. As you permit the self to re-learn remote viewing, you discover you re-experience everything on this planet and in other realms and planets.
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Michael C. Dewey Says:
2 September 2009 at 8:07 am.
Ya the emotions that build up in my mind when I see Troops all over this Planet, from this Union, which should be brought Home. Those tears are what tell me I am still alive. Emotions tell US what is right if we listen long enough.
xoxo-Robin
Robin Replies
Dear Michael, This is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever read. You are deeply emotional and that your soul cries for these troops and remembers them is very moving. You are SO deeply wise when you say: “Those tears are what tell me I am still alive.” I just LOVE LOVE LOVE this line. It SO powerfully true. What a wonderful insight. I feel this same way and have written almost this exact same line in a book I just finished. This whole comment is straight from the heart and so beautiful. I am grateful you shared it as it touched me deeply. Good for you. xox
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Dorothy Stahlnecker Says:
2 September 2009 at 8:16 pm.
I forgot to say thank you for the blogging tip regarding the videos we’re all signed up and now we’ll have a library because you took the time to share the idea with us..
Hugs my friend..
Dorothea…
from grammology…
grammology.com
PS I had a scan today and to the moment I am cancer free…whewwww….happy times
Robin Replies
Dear Dorothy. First off, I am THRILLED that you scan was cancer free. YIPPEEEEEEEEEEEEE!! That is the best news EVER!! I am so so so happy about this. You go girl and just keep being your indomitable self. I am so proud of you for choosing to turn to Life, Love, Compassion, Wisdom and Joy over and over, no matter what is thrown at you. This doesn’t mean you may nor feel down, discouraged at times, or even depressed, but you my dear Dorothy are a fighter. And that makes all the difference in the world. You whole being radiates with powerful energy.
I added you as a friend on YouTube and was delighted to see all the videos you had there. Just wonderful. Thank you dear friend. Hugs right back to you. Always.
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Mike Foster Says:
2 September 2009 at 11:26 pm.
I feel lucky, blessed, and at times cursed at having been allowed to grow up with basically a free reign in expressing my emotions. I look back now and think–what were my parents thinking? But that experience made me the man I am today: outspoken, funny, insightful, thoughtful, sensitive, expressive, and happy.
This quote is perfect: “To the cognition of the brain must be added the experience of the soul.”
Thanks Robin!
peace,
mike
livelife365
Robin Replies
Hi dear mike, I love this comment. I keep learning more and more about you and find that you are a remarkable and fascinating human being. I too grew up expressing my feelings. My situation sounds similar to yours. I agree that looking back at it it can seem wild and “what were they thinking?”. BUT also agree that it has made me who I am today, which is someone who is totally at ease around emotional people. Now in my life, I love that I am still emotional in every way, including all the ways you mention here. It certain explains a lot to me why we both are very at ease in front of a camera. I think it is WHY I connect with you, your work and your absolutely delightful videos. It does my heart good to see someone being just…so much themselves. I relate to that. Thank you my dear friend for stopping in here. I am enjoying getting to know you. You have so much to offer the world. And thank YOU, mike. A lot.
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Tara S. Dickherber, M.Ed, CPC Says:
3 September 2009 at 6:51 am.
We can be a victim to our emotions or we can be the captain of our emotions! I choose and teach the latter!!
Robin Replies
Dear Tara, Yes! Excellent point. I think if we don’t claim (or own) our emotions and really explore them they can claim (and run) us. I too choose to be captain. Thank you dear Tara for sharing you wisdom here.
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gene Says:
6 September 2009 at 2:25 am.
Greetings from a hot hot place!!! Yes warming up here nicely..
Me being someone that doesn’t like to share my feelings aka emotions, it sometimes kills me inside, slowly but surely it kills me, and it kills me even more that I can’t let them out. This past week was especially filled with negative emotions, and by Friday I realized I need to do something to get rid of the emotions, especially the bad ones. Even if I just get quiet and work through them and analyse them I might feel slightly better. I think it’s working!
Hope you’re doing well, and the cold hasn’t arrive yet!! But it’s not here any more, so must be on it’s way to you!!!
Have a blessed week!
Robin Replies
My Dear Gene, Nope, no cold here!! I mean, it’s soooo HOT HOT here that I wore t-shirt and shorts today. I mean, SO HOT HOT that I was barefoot in the garden. Nope, no cold here. No cold here EVER! I mean we live in perpetual heat. I’m sure my HOT HOT is hotter than you mere hot hot. Hahahahahahahah!! Okay, I will fess up. We have had a few, now only a VERY few slightly cool evenings. Nothing serious mind you. Okay, I’ll admit it, I’m desperately clinging to my summer. Okay okay, it’s September, so TECHNICALLY it’s f…f…fa….I can’t say the word. LOL!! Okay it’s FALL!! You win. BUT only for a few months. Then you will have to return the summer to ME!!
Also, my dear friend, I LOVED your comment here. It’s beautiful because it’s so honest and heartfelt. You are a good person and your innate nature is kind, playful, creative, and wise. So yes, even if you start just by sitting quietly and working through your emotions, as you say. I think you will feel better. Each time you are able to do this it will become easier. You could even try writing or type out your feelings. Just let yourself go and write whatever you feel without judgment. No one has to see it and you can destroy it when you are done. I am sending you lots of courage to explore and find ways to let go. I wish for you peace and the hope that you have a more easeful time this week. Thank you for making me laugh and for sharing in a heartfelt way. It means much.
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tanesha Says:
7 September 2009 at 12:32 am.
Good
Robin Replies
Yes, it IS good. It works! Thank you Tanesha for helping sort out my computer problem!! You are the best! )
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John Bait Says:
12 November 2009 at 4:08 pm.
Good work here… effort definitely pays off as you have a nice site
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