To Be Connected

Over the weekend, I went down the Alysa Liu (and Punch too - IYKYK) rabbit hole. And naturally those were the only things that kept coming up on my feed - including some who were quick to share their 2 cents worth about how to step away to find yourself and joy that ends with a nudge to sign up for courses or services (which left a very unpleasant aftertaste for me).

Yes, like many, I was inspired by her courage to carve her own path, to find herself, to rediscover her joy of living (and skating), and her ultimate triumph. But that was not what resonated the most for me. 

It was her yearn for connection, first with herself, and then with others. When asked about what she wants to share with the world during an interview after winning, she shared joyfully that human connection (not performing or winning) is the one thing she seeks the most. 

Oh, that touched something deep in my heart.

What I saw was so beautiful and touching about her performance was the way she was so connected - with the way her body moves, with the music, and with her audience. She wasn’t just performing a routine that she’s mastered to win. To me, she was connecting to something deep in her heart and the joy she was experiencing from that place exudes through her whole being! 

What came as a result of that was pure beauty. And that continued in the way she was connecting with others, be it her teammates or the other competitors. 

Isn’t that what we all truly yearn for? 

Connection, with who we truly are, and from that place offer that to another human being? Without the former, our desire may come from a place of seeking for love and approval, and all the ways we’ve learned to perform to receive that. Yet when we are able to feel safely and truly connected within, we are able to experience the world with so much openness, aliveness, and joy. 

How beautiful it is to open our hearts and meet others from that place, instead of protection.

Isn’t that why we are all trying to reach out to one another through social media and all these platforms? To seek some form of connection with others so we don’t feel so alone. To feel seen, heard and understood. To feel held. To be loved. 

Yet we hide behind the comfort of the screen because it feels safer than risk being vulnerable, risk being rejected, and risk being truly seen for who we are and not some polished version of us. The fear of being judged, of not being enough, of not being chosen for who we are. 

I know that feeling very well. 

I was reminded of that last Saturday while speaking at the Wellness Workshop I was at. If you know me, you’ll know that speaking in front of people isn’t my jam. Yet over the last 2 years, I’ve been intentionally putting myself in those situations, at first out of the need to promote my business. But over time I realized it was because I was yearning for deep connections, even if it meant taking the risks of experiencing everything I once feared. Something I didn’t have the capacity to do before this. 

Because those fears, while they may still come up, they no longer have the same hold on me. For I know now that what I am offering in my connections with others is safely anchored in who I truly am, not some version of me that I am trying to perform. And I hope that others will experience that and seek to connect with me from that place too. 

Watching Alysa Liu reminded me again of what’s possible when we ‘feel safe enough to fall in love with life and take the risks of living’ (from one of my favorite quotes by Deb Dana), and do what we love with joy, the way we are meant to. Even when there is no guarantee, no applause, no wins, or likes. Simply because that’s who we are. And that is enough.

May you be reminded that it is possible for you too...