Today, I’m grateful for myself and my capacity to love fully and deeply. I don’t take the time to acknowledge how difficult that has been; being present enough to sense others’ needs and self-sacrificing enough to put my own needs on hold, all the while nourishing my own roots in love which run deep enough to sustain me through it all. I’ve gotten hurt a lot in the process, giving far more than I’ve taken, but I wouldn’t change a damn thing.
We often don’t take time to recognize the importance of being vulnerable and kind to YOURSELF. That requires being comfortable with yourself enough to cultivate self-wisdom – your likes and dislikes yes, but so much more! For example: What activities move you? What do you do that makes your heart sing? Taking time to name what triggers your discomfort in uncomfortable situations. What is your shame and in the grand scheme of things, why is it holding you hostage? What gives you a skip in your step? How do you love? Why do you love? What emotions trigger an overwhelming response and how do you deal with your responses compassionately? For me, it is easier to be vulnerable with others than it is to be with myself. Through years of living on my own or “alone”, I’ve had to reckon with all of this.
I’m still learning how to do this and I expect it will be a lifelong process. So recognizing the well of love within me, its manifestation in a sense of care for my dear ones that has become endemic to my very being, that is truly rooted in deep self-wisdom, that is what I am grateful for.