by Nico van Haastrecht, Warnsveld, The Netherlands

In 2006 I was presented with the Gentle Breath Meditation at a workshop with Chris James. At that time I was involved in several new age movements/modalities such as yoga, Steiner schools and a guru, and I visited ayahuasca (ayawaska) ceremonies – all in order to better my life, which I was not content with. I was missing the essence of life but could not grasp it at that time. I was desperately trying everything presented to me without first discerning where it came from.

Along with the gentle breath meditation, I started to read Serge Benhayon’s book ‘The Way It Is’. I felt a very strong connection with all that was presented by the book, it was like an “I know that” from deep within. Through reading the book and doing the gentle breath meditation, slowly, slowly I came into more connection with myself and allowed myself to feel what I felt.

The beginning was not easy because my wife started to react as I was providing her my love instead of fulfilling her needs, and for me there was no other way of being. I had my truth that I had to honour, and that for me was more precious than a relationship built on needs. She started to blame me for being selfish, not contributing etc. and I let her, accepting and appreciating who she was. Inspired by the way I was living my life, after about nine months she too started reading Serge’s book and listening to the audio presentations from Universal Medicine. I did not persuade her in any way but just inspired her by my way of living.

Later on our children also started to become more connected with their truth, which was not always easy because it required them to be honest with themselves, and to acknowledge the things they might have felt at the time but did not act on. It was also confronting to me as a parent, because I had told them, explicitly or implicitly, to do what I wanted them to do in exchange for my love and support.

After a few years I went to Serge Benhayon’s workshops in the UK where I learnt how it is to be in connection with a group of people living and expressing the same truth. The joy that that brings is amazing, since it unifies us as human beings. Instead of looking to another person’s skills and capabilities out of comparison, I could enjoy all the different aspects of human expression from other people that show us we are all important members of humanity. I do matter, and it is important that I am aware of that!

My life has improved considerably from where I started. I now enjoy life and feel a true purpose to it, instead of living towards goals that never, ever gave me true fulfilment when I met them. My life has become simpler, which for me as an engineer was, and is, challenging – as engineers we are expected to provide logical and complex solutions to the presented issues in life.