What does it mean, “being yes”?
I heard a fair amount of mixed opinions on the matter this summer as I tromped around for seven days carrying a sign that boldly stated “YES” at a festival with 35,000 other people in Ochoco National Forrest.
I became compelled to create my sign weeks prior at a small gathering where I, for the first time, experienced the soul vibrating power of progressive deep house music. As each new long whoompie tone emanated from the speaker my mind started repeating “yes”—over and over again. It’s like my spirit was communicating with my mind (in English for once, heh.)
My body was smiling from inside out as the “yesses” within me got louder. Yes. Yess. YESSS!
Inspired to share the ever growing “yes” reverberating through me, I ran over to the craft table. I used some scrap cardboard and painted my sign quickly and hopped back on the dance floor, bumping it in the air in full approval of all the DJs creations.
At first, the “yes” sign came into play strictly because I wanted to communicate with the DJs. “Yes, I am into it. You’re rocking my world.” I found it powerful and epic to catch their eyes right after they read the sign because 10 out of 10 times, we would exchange depth filled eye contact with huge ear to ear grins, sometimes even mouthing to each other, “yesssssss!”
As the festival trickled on, I started feeling connected to the “yes” sign in a more profound way; like I had a responsibility to only be places and around people that I felt “yes” about on all levels. Why? Because if I were to be anywhere else, I would be falsely advertising my current state of being. And why allow myself to sit somewhere I felt any inclining of “no” about when I had this sweet high vibration sign to share and honor?
90 percent of the attention the sign drew in was pure magic and happiness. The amount of gratitude pouring in my direction was phenomenal. The other 10 percent, well, every crowd has its batch of people whom feel the need to aggressively holler “no” to the “yes.”
On a few occasions people would offer me party favors or tell me to do bizarre things, when I would politely decline they would argue, “You have the ‘yes’ sign, you have to say yes!”
It was these few strange encounters that made me really start to contemplate the depth of a simple “yes.”
What was lost on these people is that saying “yes” to everything isn’t what being yes is about, to me anyway.
How I have come to see it and what I hope to spread vibrationally:
The power of “yes” is learning to say “yes” to only what serves our greatest good for the kind of life we want to lead.
Being aware of what you are “yes” about and when you are “yes” about it will tell you a lot about where you are in this current moment of your life experience. Realizing that just because you don’t say “no” to something directly, by saying “yes” to one thing you are indirectly saying “no” to another.
What do you say “yes” to these days?
Once we realize our yeses have implied nos, it makes it easier to prioritize what we choose to say yes to.
Do your yeses align with the person you desire to be?
Things I am focused on being yes about are:
>Making time to apprecitate nature
>>Conversations with like minded people
>>Movement
>>Healthy eating
>>Writing
>>Pampering people
>>Adventure
>>Fitness
>>Hydration
>>Spring
Author: Karissa Marie Anderson
Image: Author’s Own
Editor: Sara Kärpänen
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YES! lol I really needed to hear this. Thank you!
Lovely article. Thanks.
This reaches me on every level! I’m so thankful to have come across this article today! My current life intentions for soul growth, mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually is to be intentional with my year’s and courageous in my no’s. I’m working to release people pleasing ways, as in doing so. Only leaves my soul and spirit feeling depleted! I realize the best ways to serve others is to be authentic and intentional with myself! I hope to read more like blogs, articles, messages that feel like there from someone’s heart and soul as this does. I’d love to be given some more information. I think starting with this elephant journal.com sounds good:) thank you for your bravery to be true to yourself! YES!