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BY MANAL ALDABBAGH
“There is no place like home.” Those words made famous by the Wizard of Oz captivated the longing deep in many of, if not all, us; the desire to be and feel at home. While the definition of home can vary depending on whom you ask, for me, longing to be home is to be in my body. My first home. The part of me that goes wherever I go, that only death can separate.
I genuinely believe that unless I can feel home in my body, any other definition of home will be incomplete, but this can seem foreign to many people, and that is no fault of their own. We live in a world where being in our body can feel unsafe due to traumas or negative associations. It is difficult to feel safe in our body when it's bombarded with messages saying that it’s not good enough, not important enough, not up to the standards of other people…
We all know Earth is home, and we must protect it and build our connection with it, but can we really do that without connecting to our first home, the body?
It is no longer a luxury; it's a necessity. Then again, how do we start?
The simplest answer is to breathe. The breath is what separates the dead from the living, and while we can still be breathing and living, we are oblivious and unconscious, more likely dead than alive.
My body.
My home.
Home of my brush and a lightness, home of my memories and future, home of my soul; my home.
My body.
There's no place like home, and no home without being home in my body, and no home I miss and long for more than my body.
“I want to know if you need
permission to arrive home right now
into your body, longing to learn you.”
— Brooke McNamara
Manal Aldabbagh (@manal.aldabbagh) is guided by her curiosity and love for learning. Currently, she is a coach, dance and movement facilitator and Embodied Yoga Principles teacher. Manal's passion is to support individuals on their journey to wholeness.