As I’ve shared before, I’m a huge fan and subscriber of Gaia TV. For a very reasonable price, I use it at least once a day (sometimes more) to do any number of excellent yoga classes, meditations, and to watch inspirational, uplifting and informative documentaries and films which are highly unique and nourishing for mind, body, and soul.
One of my favourite yoga teachers on Gaia TV is Meghan McCraken. I love her gentle guidance, along with her deep knowledge of yoga teachings and traditions and her authenticity. While I was following along with one her excellent yoga classes, she mentioned a poem that she wrote about “orphans of my heart” which greatly intrigued me and resonated with me as a therapist immediately.
In this particular practice called “Radical Acceptance”, Meghan was encouraging students to embrace and accept those parts of themselves which they avoid and deem ‘unacceptable’. I run across this concept with clients practically every day- we all have parts of ourselves we feel shame around and try to avoid because facing them is so painful.
As a therapist, I gently encourage and guide clients to slowly and consciously examine these shame-based parts of themselves with curiosity and compassion. This takes great courage for all of us as most of us have been stuffing these parts of ourselves down deep inside and avoiding facing them for most of our lives.
I work a lot with “the inner child” because I believe that these untapped parts of ourselves are part of that wee one we carry around inside our hearts who feels badly/ashamed of herself. When I heard Meghan refer to “orphans of my heart”, I immediately realized she was talking about the inner child who we cut ourselves off from and thus, “orphan”. What a brilliant analogy.
After I finished the beautiful yoga class, I immediately searched the internet for her poem and fell in love with it and read it to myself when I am being particularly unkind to myself. I thought I would share it with you, my dear readers, so that you could also benefit from it and learn to embrace your own ‘orphans of your heart’.
Orphans of My Heart
Children of the night,
lost and lingering in the recesses of darkness,
come close now
to the fire of unconditional love,
so that I may see your sad and shameful faces.
I sense that I know you,
you who have been unworthy and lonely
for so long.
Let me cup your tarnished cheeks in my culpable hands
and look upon the fear in your eyes,
the cuts on your skin,
and the bruises on your
tiny, precious hearts.
Can you allow me to hold you now, dear ones?
The ones I have sent out to be raw and wild and all alone,
the ones I have said are not welcome here,
the ones I have discarded
in my own apprehension for deeper understanding.
You, who bear the burden
of all the pain,
come and be near the fire for once,
the fire of unconditional love.
Let it warm your face and
melt your cold and aching.
Please, please, please
allow me now, at this late hour,
to welcome you in.
To finally hold and behold all of you
orphans of my heart.
Together,
let us all sit down by the fire
and be warm…
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