Echo of Love

Empathy is about finding echoes of another person in yourself.
— Mohsin Hamid

Let me begin by encouraging you to understand that YOU are empathic. As spiritual, beings you were born with the ability to experience empathy. As you journey through your yoga practice and learn to align your bodies, you also learn to align your thoughts. By aligning your body and thoughts, you naturally align your emotions. Aligning your body, mind and emotions allows you to embrace your unique spirituality, empathy and intuition. None of this is news to you, but it is important to recognize as I move on.

Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.
— Mother Teresa

The world we live in is an echo of our thoughts, emotions and intentions. What we seek— the thoughts, emotions and intentions that drive our lives— reverberate and are echoed back at us. As empaths, we also experience the echo of thoughts, emotions and intentions of those people around us. For those of you who have been feeling overwhelmed lately, and I trust that is most of you, you are not alone. You are experiencing the reverberation of the masses as they begin to shout to belong. This explains why you feel lost and possibly alone as the world around us struggles to reconnect through love.

When you seek love with all your heart, you shall find its echoes in the universe.
— Rumi

Why have I shared this with everyone? Well, hopefully to offer some insight that allows for a little relief. Once we understand the why, we can navigating it more effectively and with more compassion. First, recognize and accept that the thoughts and emotions that threaten to overwhelm you are not entirely your own. You are experiencing the thoughts and emotions of others as well as your own. Second, take the necessary time for you. While always important, it will be important at this time and allow you to regain your strength and balance. It is not selfish to take steps to allow yourself to heal. Third, begin to whisper. As the echo begins to build, you can focus on lowering your own personal volume. As you lower your volume and decrease your personal reverberations, others around you will mirror you in rapport and do the same. Last, when you speak, keep your internal and external dialogue focused on love. Allow the echo of love to fill the universe like the sound of om in the hot yoga studio.  

Yours in wellness, with love and hugs,

Dallas Kahlhamer, Wellness Concierge, Destination Kohler