Before the world appears solid, it is perceived. Before events feel meaningful, they are interpreted. Before life feels heavy or light, fast or slow, kind or cruel β there is a quieter layer beneath it all. There is the “I am.” This is where reality begins, not in the external world, but in the depths of our own perception. The “I am” state is the foundational unit of experience, the lens through which everything is filtered, and the doorway through which the world arrives.
Your outer world constantly reassures your inner self-image. What you perceive yourself to be β worthy or unworthy, safe or threatened, free or constrained β becomes the lens through which everything is seen. Reality reflects that lens back to you, again and again, until it feels unquestionable. This is not because reality is cruel. It is because reality is consistent. It is a feedback loop, a mirror that shows you what you have been telling yourself about who you are. And what you see in that mirror, you believe to be true.
When the “I am” state is stable, life feels spacious. Time stretches. Curiosity returns. Thought becomes playful again. You feel the freedom to explore, to wonder, to dream. But when the “I am” state is borrowed β shaped by expectations, comparisons, or external approval β life contracts. Time feels repetitive. The world begins to drag. You feel the weight of someone else’s opinion, the burden of living up to an image that is not your own. And so, you begin to question: What am I repeatedly perceiving myself to be?
Unhappiness often isn’t caused by circumstances. It’s caused by living inside a perception that was never consciously chosen. You were given a script, a role to play, and you played it without questioning. But the script was not yours. The role was not yours. And so, you feel like you’re living someone else’s life, like you’re wearing someone else’s skin. You feel the discomfort of being in a body that is not fully yours, of being in a world that is not fully real.
Notice something subtle. When you are deeply thinking β not worrying, not scrolling, not reacting β but wonderingβ¦ you feel more alive. This is not accidental. The mind craves novelty, not stimulation. Imagination, curiosity, and reflection create internal movement β and movement is life. This is why thinking keeps people young. Not youthful in age, but in perception. When you are curious, you are open. When you are open, you are receptive. And when you are receptive, you are alive.
Reality is not separate from perception. It is a feedback system. What repeats in your life is often what is being internally reassured. What feels “stuck” is usually a perception that hasn’t been questioned. You see, perception is not a mirror of the world. It is the doorway through which the world arrives. And if you want to change your reality, you must first change your perception. You must be willing to question what you have been telling yourself about who you are, about what is possible, about what is real.
Ease is not avoidance. Ease is alignment. Ease is the state where your inner frequency and your outer reality finally agree. It’s the exhale you’ve been holding. The permission you’ve been waiting for someone else to give you. But ease is not something that can be given to you. It is something that must be cultivated, something that must be chosen. You must choose to let go of the need to control, to let go of the need to be right. You must choose to surrender, to trust, to have faith.
Emotional alchemy β the sacred art of transforming one state into another. Fear into faith. Doubt into certainty. Not by force. By feeling. By choosing again. And again. Until the new feeling becomes home. This is the spark of creation, the spark of life. This is the power of perception, the power of the “I am” state. You are not a victim of circumstance. You are the creator of your reality. You are the one who chooses what you perceive, what you believe, what you become.
In the stillness of the night, when the world is quiet, and the stars are shining bright, I invite you to wonder: What am I repeatedly perceiving myself to be? What lens am I looking through? What reality am I creating? Is it one of fear, of doubt, of limitation? Or is it one of faith, of trust, of limitless possibility? The answer is not something that can be given to you. It is something that must be discovered, something that must be felt. And so, I invite you to take a deep breath, to feel the sensation of your feet on the ground, to feel the beating of your heart. I invite you to come home to yourself, to come home to your “I am” state. For it is here, in this sacred space, that you will find the power to create, to transform, to become.
You don’t need to become someone else. You don’t need to fix yourself. You only need to notice: What am I repeatedly perceiving myself to be? That question alone can open a door. And once curiosity returns, reality is already shifting. The world is already changing. You are already becoming. And so, I leave you with this: Perception is not a mirror of the world. It is the doorway through which the world arrives. What will you create today?
Β© 2025 Sparklebox | Written by Elle Vida
β¨ Explore more from Sparklebox:
β’ The Hidden Work β Mental Alchemy Guide β’ Musebox β Affirmations & Visual Rituals β’ Soundbox β Healing Frequencies