Emelie Thibodeaux
“I vow to hold you gently in my heart all my life. I vow to be a clear mirror always reflecting your beauty. I vow to keep my heart open through all doubt, fear, anger, and pain. I vow to open to the truth of each moment. I vow to cherish and honor your trust for the precious gift that it is. I vow to be as spacious as the sky, and give each of us the space to grow. I vow to love, honor, and cherish you always. With all my heart, with a clear mind, and with each breath, I commit to you.”
These are the vows made by Diane Mariechild (author of OPEN MIND, Women’s Daily Inspiration for Becoming Mindful) with her partner at their commitment ceremony years ago. As I read them over and over, it came to me that they could be appropriate vows for commitment to Self.
Read them again, with Self in mind. Might we not hold ourselves gently in our own hearts, as we do our loved ones? Reflect our beauty to ourselves (not the outer layer, but that which we hold inside)? How would we be different if we could keep our hearts open through all doubt, fear, anger and pain, and be open to the truth of each moment?
And trust. What if we could learn to trust ourselves in all ways, especially knowing that we are always there for ourselves, taking good care at all times, treating ourselves as a beloved friend? What if we could give ourselves space — space to stand in our power, space to fall down and trust that we will pick ourselves up again, space to be who we are right now and to grow into who we will be … space to just be our human selves, without judgment? How powerful would that be?
If we promise to another in commitment ceremonies to love, honor, and cherish that beloved, why can’t we make those same vows to ourselves? Could taking these vows to honor ourselves even change the world in which we live? If we gave these blessings to ourselves, each of us could be stronger, happier, and live more mindfully with peace in our hearts. Surely that would flow over into the rest of the world!
As we begin another year, let’s think about making Ms. Mariechild’s vows as our own and see if committing to ourselves makes a change in us and maybe even the world.