She & I : A Conversation (Part-3) : Kokoro no me ga hirakeru - Your heart's eye is opening

Conversation continued from -

https://www.dhirubhai.net/posts/anisha-sharma-972934_she-ia-conversationpart-2longing-activity-7252301093869641728-e-Dm

In the next session, her voice had a different tone—lighter, but also emotional, as if something had finally surfaced. I could tell something had shifted.

“I think I’ve figured it out,” she said, almost as if she could hardly believe her own words. “I think I know what I’ve been missing all this time.”

I leaned in, curious. “Tell me about it.”

“I went to the beach last weekend, alone. I didn’t plan to, it just kind of happened,” she began, her voice quieter now, as if she was reliving the moment. “And... I just sat there. No phone, no work, no family needing anything from me. Just me, the water, and the breeze.”

I could sense a shift, like something deep was surfacing. I stayed quiet, giving her space to continue.

“I just... sat. And for the first time in years, I wasn’t thinking about what I needed to do next, or who I needed to be. I was just... there. Sitting by the ocean. Watching the waves roll in, feeling the wind on my face. And I felt something I haven’t felt in so long: peace.”

Her words hung in the air, thick with emotion. “It’s like... all that noise, all that pressure, just faded. I could breathe. Really breathe.”

I nodded, sensing the magnitude of what she was describing. “What was that like for you?” I asked gently.

She paused, her voice trembling. “It felt like... coming home. But not to a place. To myself. For the first time, I was just being—not doing, not achieving, not proving. Just... being. And?in that moment, I was enough.”

I felt the weight of her realization, and I asked softly, “How long has it been since you gave yourself that?”

Tears brimmed in her eyes as she whispered, “Too long. I started crying right there on that beach because I realized... I’ve been doing everything for everyone else for so many years—work, family, all of it. But I never stopped to think about what I needed.?I never stopped to just be with myself.”

Her voice cracked, and she wiped her eyes. “I’ve been trying to fill this void with accomplishments, with relationships, with things that look good on the outside. But nothing worked, because I was never giving myself time to just be.”

I gave her space to process that, feeling the depth of her breakthrough. “It sounds like that?moment of stillness gave you something you’d been missing for a long time.”

She nodded. “Yes. It’s like I was searching everywhere for something to make me feel whole, and it was right there all along—just sitting by the water, in the quiet, letting myself?feel...?alive. I didn’t need to do anything. Just being in nature, letting myself breathe... that’s what fills me.”

She let out a deep breath, as though a weight had been lifted from her chest. “It was so simple, but so profound. For the first time in years, I felt connected. Not to my work, not to other people... but to myself. And I realized how much I’ve been neglecting that part of me.”

I could see how deeply this resonated with her, and I leaned in. “You have found something that really matters to you—being in that stillness, in nature, where there are no expectations, just you.”

Her voice grew stronger. “Yes. It’s like I’ve been running on autopilot for so long, trying to meet everyone else’s needs, trying to live up to what I thought life should be. But in that moment, sitting by the ocean... I didn’t need anything more. I just needed me.”

Tears rolled down her cheeks, and I could hear the release in her voice as she spoke. “I don’t want to lose that feeling again. I want to make time for that. For me.?For just being. Because that’s what fills me up.?It’s not selfish—it’s necessary.”

I smiled softly, holding the space for her. “It feels like you’ve discovered incredibly important message -?time for yourself isn’t a luxury, it’s essential. You’ve been running on empty, but now you’ve found what truly nurtures you.”

She nodded, her tears subsiding, but her smile more sure. “I have. And I don’t feel guilty about it anymore. I deserve that time. I deserve to be with myself, to feel connected to the world around me, to let go of the need to constantly be doing.”

“You’ve discovered something important,” I said gently. “Now you can?honor that need by making space for it regularly.”

She nodded, her voice softer but with a new sense of determination. “Yes. I’ll make sure to do that. For myself. I need that peace, that stillness.”

I could sense a shift in her, like a door within her heart had begun to open. Recalling a Japanese phrase I knew,?I said gently,?"Kokoro no me ga hirakeru." “It means?your heart’s eye is opening. You may not have all the answers yet, but you’re beginning to see. Trust that feeling.”

Her gaze softened as she smiled, a mixture of gratitude and hope. “I feel that. Like I’m close, even if I’m not there yet.”

I smiled back. “Remember, you’re never alone. We’re all connected by the same sky. And under that sky, you’ll always find your way forward, even when the answers seem just out of reach.”

She exhaled deeply, her heart lighter. In that moment, she knew she wasn’t finished with her journey—but she had faith that she was on the right path.