The other morning, sipping lukewarm coffee, I stumbled upon something in my weekly horoscope that truly stopped me in my tracks. You know, the kind of advice that just… sits with you, nagging a bit? It wasn’t about planetary alignments or impending fortunes, not really. It was an invitation, a daring one actually: to compose a “vigorous prayer” for something I genuinely feared I didn’t deserve, or worse, wasn’t *supposed* to want. Talk about a gut punch. My initial thought, honestly? ‘Oh, come on, that’s a bit much.’
But the words kept echoing: “What is the blessing, healing, or freedom that feels ‘too much,’ ‘too selfish,’ ‘too late,’ or ‘too impossible’ for you to yearn for?” Man, that hit home. We’re so good at shrinking our desires, aren’t we? Tucking them away, telling ourselves we should be grateful for what we have—and absolutely, we should!—but sometimes, that gratitude can morph into a quiet acceptance of less than what our soul truly craves. For me, it was this deep, almost embarrassing longing for… well, let’s just say a particular kind of creative breakthrough paired with a rather audacious level of peace in my daily life. It felt greedy. Too big.
The horoscope, from Rob Brezsny, suggested I start this prayer with, “Dear Great Mystery, I’m nervous about asking for this, but I will ask anyway.” And then? “Let your heart speak without editing.” So, for ten days straight, I did it. Every morning, with my (sometimes still lukewarm) coffee, I sat down and let my unedited heart spill onto the page. Some days it felt silly. Other days, surprisingly vulnerable. What emerged wasn’t just a list of wants, no, not at all; it was a deeper understanding of *why* I wanted these things, how they connected to my ability to give more, to love more fiercely, to live with an honesty I hadn’t quite tapped into yet. It truly was an experience.
The 508 Takeaway
This whole experiment, this ten-day dive into unapologetic desire, taught me a profound lesson about self-kindness. It’s not about materialism or demanding things from the universe. It’s about recognizing our inherent worthiness. When we give ourselves permission to acknowledge and voice our deepest, most audacious yearnings—even the ones that feel ‘too much’—we’re actually nurturing a radical form of self-compassion. We’re telling ourselves, ‘Yes, you are worthy of abundance, of joy, of that specific, beautiful thing that lights you up.’ And here’s the kicker: when we truly believe we deserve blessings, we open ourselves up to receiving them, which in turn, allows us to radiate more kindness and generosity outwards. It’s a full-circle kind of magic, really, isn’t it?
This story was originally reported by Good News Network. You can read the full original article here.
