You are so much more beautiful than you see yourself as. || I don't care if you think you're drop dead gorgeous, you're still more beautiful than that. And not just on the outside. Your inner beauty is so much stronger than you realize. Your kindness speaks volumes. That gentleness with yourself you've been working on, it's beautiful. Inside and out, you are far more gorgeous than the flaws you probably tend to get stuck on.
Your strength is an incredible thing, and it's worth being proud of. || Don't shrink away from it. It's worth talking about, it's worth bragging about. You're amazing. In good times and bad, you've made it! You handle more than you thought you were capable of. Don't ever minimize how big of an accomplishment that is.
You deserve to dream. || You aren't selfish for wanting more. You're not selfish for wanting to chase those dreams.
Your mistakes do not define you. || Every. Single. Person. makes mistakes. Sometimes those mistakes are super public, and sometimes they live in the solitary of our own lives. But we all make them. You aren't your mistakes. You're a person who has made mistakes, just like the rest of us.
It's okay to let go of the things that are no longer serving you. || Even if at one point you thought they would be your entire life. Even if at one point, they were your entire life. If that diet you raved about forever is no longer healthy for you, find a new one. If your friendships are no longer enriching to you, it's okay to distance yourself and let them go. If the hobby you loved no longer brings you joy, it's okay to move on. You're allowed to change, and you do not have to drag all of your old selves with you into each new season.
Have the best Monday, friends. Cheers to a fresh week!
You are enough. You are so enough. I know that you probably don't think so, and when you look at your life as a whole, the first thing you notice is the places where you don't feel like you are enough. But listen to me, you beautiful creature, you: You are enough. I think that sometimes we feel like we're not enough because we keep forcing things on ourselves that were never meant for us. We try to wear hats we were never meant to wear, try to fill positions we were never meant to fill, try to be things for people that we were never meant to be. But the things that were meant for you? Oh, babe. You are more than enough.
You are loved. More than you know.
You are a force to be reckoned with. You're gifted in such specific ways. When you recognize those areas and use those things, watch out, world.
Sometimes the right choice and the right feelings come at different times. So if you're feeling crappy about that decision you had to make because you know in your gut it was the right thing to do, hold on just a little longer. Emotions are fickle things, and it can take them awhile to catch up.
The small steps you're taking are adding up. So keep up the work. I know it's hard to not see instant results when you feel like you're working hard. It sucks to not see a big paycheck or a toned stomach or a restored relationship right away, but I promise, the work you're doing will get you there. Those small steps are leading you to the right place. Keep taking them. Keep working hard.
Happy Thursday, friends. Sending so much love your way today.
I love blogging. Blogging is also super weird. There are these little communities of people who talk about serious things and shallow things, about book reviews and politics, about Amazon orders and coffee dates. Friendships are made and careers are created. It's pretty magical what we can do with our words.
Sometimes when I really think about that, think about how blogs host our words for anyone to read, I think about the kinds of things I want to say. I think about if I was looking at you, face to face, what would I want to tell you?
If I could tell you anything today...
...I'd tell you that you can make it through the hard things you're going through. And that sometimes actually believing that is the hardest part.
...I'd tell you to stop giving so much thought to what other people might think about you. You took a selfie that you're really feeling yourself in? Post it. Worried someone will say you're a conceited millennial? Let them. I say the fact that you feel confident enough today to share a picture of your face is awesome. Want to get a haircut that stopped being cool a little while ago? It's your hair. Cut it. Want to start selling something but worried that your friends will make fun of you for selling Scentsy/LuLaRoe/Plexus/Monat? WHO CARES? If it makes you happy, do it.
...I'd tell you to stop apologizing for what you like and stop pretending you like things that you don't. It is really and truly okay that you love Taco Bell and hate green juice. The world will keep spinning, I promise.
...I'd tell you that until you are actually dead, it's never too late to start over and no situation is truly hopeless. As long as there is breath in your lungs, your dreams and your happiness are a possibility.
...I'd tell you that you are not too much. The bright hair colors, the loud opinions, the strong political stances, the way you can eat an entire pizza by yourself, the way you absolutely slay solo karaoke on every drive. Never too much.
...I'd tell you that you are amazing. Today and every day. It's okay if you woke up feeling like crap, you're still you, and you are amazing.
