Desire
By Elle Dooley
We begin another turn of the Wheel with Aries. Our longing for light, the tender blossoms of Spring, the budding of trees, the return of songbirds, the spark of the heart - our desire to initiate another round of the seasons.
Desire is an initiating energy. When I first encountered this thought, it opened my breath. I felt as if my body had acquired a plenum, a space beneath my diaphragm for anticipation and delight to freely circulate.
There has been much written about desire, much of it focused on avarice, greed, and covetousness. And when desire is unbalanced, it could certainly lead to excess.
But I am inspired and invited by this quote from Andrea Matthews LPC, “Desire brings you to a kind of innocent joy. Desire may even be a sacred connection to your deepest self. Usually when you fulfill a desire, you feel freer, more alive, more peaceful, or more grounded.”
Imagine the impossible or impractical. Dream something into existence. Want something so much that you take the steps to make it happen. Desire something out loud. Own that you want it. What desire burns in your heart? Where would you stake your claim, make your mark, declare your love?
I grew up in a large family with few resources. “Be thankful for what you have” was spoken more as an admonition than an invitation to gratitude. So I suppressed my desire for – anything. The message is that I was unworthy of more than I had been given, and incapable of creating a more abundant world for myself. I was gone from my family for many years before I allowed myself to imagine wanting – anything. Already I assumed it would be beyond my reach. I am thankful for what I have. And I now have the courage to imagine and desire – anything.
Desire, for me, is a declaration of what I love, what’s important to me. It’s a declaration of what I need to see exist in the world. I couldn’t have imagined a life complete without allowing desire to take my heart, without letting curiosity be my guide.
Hold your heart in your loving hands and ask yourself what you desire. I would love to know what amazing things you are holding on your heart’s horizon. Or where your desire has taken you.
