Hello Island Women! I am excited to be sharing with you again. I truly love this exchange of heart and soul, and I hope you do too. When I ask my intuition what I should write about, a recent poem called “My Suit” comes to mind.

I was with some friends not too long ago and we talked about how we tend to cover ourselves in layers of insulation, as protection from a world that can feel harsh and frightening. A man, who is the new partner of a friend of mine, looked at me with desperate eyes, and confessed that he was exhausted from wearing this “suit” and that he was no longer able to do it. I was glad, and with twinkling eyes, I said: “Good for you.”

I have since mentioned this to many other people and all have resonated strongly with this notion that we have created “suits” and are coming to the realization that the “suit” does not suit us now. We are realizing the cost of carrying it around and this is a healthy, though scary, place to be.

We must be brave enough to explore our suits, and remove them as we can. It is time to live with tender hearts and reconnect fully with our feelings. Many of us are wearing suits so thick that we have lost contact with our inner selves and experiences. Rediscovering who we are underneath all the layers is very important, and I believe it will be a first step in paving the way for a new way of life on earth. Even better news is that as we remove our suits, we ignite and allow others to do so as well. We really only wear our suits when other suits are worn around us.

We all know it is time, but so many of us are hesitant to do what it takes. I understand why, as I have found my own journeys of self-healing and self-discovery to be intense and difficult. I can honestly say, though, that the results are transformative and amazing. With my suit removed, or as much of it absent as possible on any given day, I am learning how to live with peace, joy, self-love, self-value and passion. I lived for thirty three years not knowing what a wonderful, beautiful soul I had buried. It has been a passionate love affair getting to know who I am and what I am here on earth for. This is how we were meant to live and we must support one another in remembering how to do it. I highly encourage you to consider giving it a try. Remove your suit, even if only for one day. You just might find that everything you thought you were hiding from is exactly what you are craving.

I wish you well, wherever you are in your walk. The journey isn’t easy, but it can be so much brighter and marvelous than we had ever believed! Happy summer to you all. We shall meet again.

My Suit
My suit is beginning to itch
I think I am outgrowing it
Been wearing it so long
Once it belonged
But now I grow on

I’ve carried it everywhere
With each brick I’ve paved
To hide the cave
Every layer I’ve cemented
But now I see
That it is misery
To wear it any longer

I’ve caked myself in bullshit
To mask whatever lurks inside
My suit has grown so thick
That it was quick
To mute the calls
From beneath the walls

My suit has staked me down
So low to the ground
That I’m not sure where my soul can be found
Heavy, the weight is crushing
Squeezing, seizing, suffocating, negating

But now my heart is waiting
The call is elevating
It says:
“Take off your suit
Peel it away layer by layer
Let it go after examination
Illumination will reveal
What is fake and what is real”

And so, I lighten my load
I dust away the tough gruff lining
As my light starts shining
I stand before you now
Terrified and somehow electrified
I confide that what’s inside
Is real
As my peels melt away
It is me who stays
This is the only way I’d wish it to be
That what I’d show you would be me

Please, I beg, that you’d be gentle
This mountainous heart is tender
Now that I’m not a pretender
I really wish that you’d become a mender
I hope that you will follow me
No longer hollow we will be
Remove your suit as it suits you
Then one day soon we will say:
“This is me.” “Yes, this is me too.”

Carlie Kilduff
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