Aligning Your Heart with the Power of Self Inquiry May 14, 2014 • 0 Comments I used to collect cookbooks and I have amassed quite a collection. In the old days, when I had a meal in mind, one of my favorite things to do was grab a stack, spread them out on the counter and rifle through the recipes. When my curiosity was satisfied, I would compose the dish. Before the Internet, I also used to save piles of Gourmet and Bon Appetit magazines in my garage for reference. It got a bit out of hand. I am intimidated by baking. I don’t like to follow directions, preferring to blaze my own trail, and I failed chemistry so I lack the technical savvy to play with the ingredients — a must for baking. Not so with cooking. For the most part, anyway. Sadly, over the last few years, my desire to cook vanished. And, having to move so often, my cookbooks have been relegated to shopping bags in the garage. Plus, it is so easy to pull up recipes on epicurious.com. It struck me the other day that I have replaced my former penchant for cookbook collecting with books on self inquiry. (I daren’t use the phrase “self help,” because I was once ridiculed for such frivolity, but that is another story for another post.) These are some of my favorite titles: Perusing my impressive library, I noticed that I have the same tendency as I do with cookbooks. I have highlighted passages that resonate, put post-it notes on pages that I want to return to, and written notes or starred the places I need to re-visit. In essence, I extract what works for me. I think self inquiry ultimately leads to aligning with one’s heart and listening to the quiet knowing that resides within. This knowing seems more accessible, now that I honor its presence. It is a practice, much like writing. The more I make space for it, the more it shows up. The more it shows up, the more I am inspired to be present. It has become a kind of dance with the energy of being alive and truly learning to be myself. Today, I happened upon some of my beloved cookbooks in the garage, and felt that familiar tinge of gastronomic excitement, to the point where I began planning a meal. Perhaps the flow of life is returning to my cells. At least, I hope so. What discoveries have you made about yourself as result of curious self inquiry? -db Who is Dianna Bonny? Hi, my name is Dianna Bonny. It’s my mission to candidly share my journey with you. For me, it’s all about the healing: to create a radiant healing energy for others who have befallen a similar fate. Together, we can forge beautiful lives of belonging and connection. Thanks for joining me today! I look forward to hearing from you.