Being more spiritually open and connected helps you be more in love with your body.

The more open and connected to the Divine I become, the more I love my body – all my curves, jiggles, wiggles, and lines. My scars, inside and out. My wonky knee, my bad shoulder, that little bit of skin that sticks out funny. Mmm, perfection.

You see, you can’t hate on a Spirit-given vessel. It stops being about what size I am and starts being more about what I’m doing with what I’ve got. If I’m indulging in self-abuse, that’s the problem. My weight doesn’t even figure into it – it’s totally about the level of self-love and care we’re giving, as opposed to what size we are.

Now for the juicy part.

Replace “size” with color. Replace “size” with gender, with sexual orientation. With religion or spirituality. Replace “size” with race, creed, nationality.

Replace it with anything we discriminate against.

It’s the disconnection from Spirit that turns us against ourselves and each other. When we’re connected, we’re open. When we’re disconnected, we close off.

It’s this closure that makes us unhappy. And we can’t see that, we’re not taught to look at things that way, so we turn our unhappiness toward ourselves and others.

Connection is invisible. But the gender, size, shape, and color of me is easily apparent. Who I love is apparent (unless I choose to hide). How I worship Spirit is apparent. What nation I live in is apparent.

You can hate on me for what’s apparent. It’s easier than connecting with me, for sure. And it’s far, far easier than connecting with Spirit. Especially when, for many of us, connecting with Spirit isn’t even something we think about. It’s not offered as a solution unless you’re already in church or being hit up by fundamentalists who are off-putting at the best of times.

So I offer it here (in a non-off-putting way, I hope).

I offer it to you.

It’s not actually complicated (note: it’s not easy, but it can certainly be simple); just take a deep breath. Close your eyes. Turn down the inner chatter of your ego, your rambunctious brain, and listen. You don’t need to light candles. You don’t need to be in a special building or wait til a special day. Unplug from the crazy whirl of the world and sit in silence, breathing deep quiet measured breaths, and see what happens.

Connection is the solution. Connection to each other will ease the loneliness that makes us lash out. Connection to Spirit will ease the ache we feel when separated from Spirit – and there is an ache, deep down, in all of us.

The next time someone pisses you right off – and it’ll happen, it happens to us all – take a deep breath. Remind yourself that this person wears the face of the Divine. This person has a story. This person has a heart. This person is lonely and scared and sad, too. Meet their eyes and breathe and remember.

The next time you look in the mirror and feel that twinge of imperfection, take a deep breath. Remind yourself that you were created to be who you are, however you are. You are loved. You are wanted. Your face is the face of the Divine.

You are one of the chosen ones.

We are, all of us, chosen to be just how we are. Breathe, remember. Connect.

And through this connection, we will change the world.