Own the space you occupy!
It seems vulnerability is a rarity. No matter your country, community, or customs, disconnection is the most common connection between us all. If someone asks you, "Hey how's it going?" you absolutely are not supposed to answer honestly unless it's positive. "Yeah man, I'm just awful, I lost my job and I think my wife is unfaithful." almost no one wants to hear that!
You're supposed to say "I'm good, and you?" maybe share a few pleasantries. Damn fine clouds today! Oh, and did you hear Jody is pregnant? Okay have a GREAT day!
What if it were another way? "Hey how's it going?" a friend asks as you approach them. Work has been hard, a new project manager has decided to reinvent the office approach to everything, and you're feeling strained. "It's been a crappy week, I'm so mentally drained that I was going to cancel, but I'm glad I didn't!" you say, smiling tepidly. You know you don't have to.
"Do you want to go look at moss in the woods and talk about it?" Your good friend says, they know you absolutely LOVE moss. You go to the places that make you feel balanced, with a pal who takes time to ask important questions. "Do you want advice, or do you want to vent?" they look into your eyes, holding space for you to let it out. What if we were more like that?
I know it's impolite to just dump your issues on people, but I also don't think we should buy into the concept that it's best to hold it in. When we hide our pain, we teach those around us to do the same. Together we hold together this flimsy notion that we should mask our humanity.
The best of us is locked away so that we can flow together like clockwork, cogs in a larger entities machine. Our lives are profit, political manipulation, the woes of inflation. I wonder if you could make a case that the disconnect is manufactured, perhaps that might benefit some kind of corrupt system of power? It is disadvantageous to industry for people to be united.
Meh, I'm probably just imagining things... I'm a sap and a dreamer, and those who would call me a fool for it have a fair case. However, I am a mule and this is my path.
This week, for Ladies of Hive community contest 105, we were asked:
Do you have a personal guiding principle (or a mantra) by which you live? If you do, what is it and how is it impacting your life so far?
This week, I'd like to invite @pinkchic and @snook to participate in this contest, which is open until Saturday 😁
Own the space you Occupy
You, right here, in this moment are wonderful. You have issues and you have gifts, you may not be where you envisioned yourself, or where you'd like to be... but it is likely that you are where you need to be. Maybe you are happy in your choices, but others aren't. Unless you're hurting them, forget it. You are valid and you don't need approval to do the things that bring you bliss.I've done a lot of stuff in my life that terrifies me, but I want to be ALIVE. I don't want fear to carve out the path I believe is available to me in this world. I want passion to be my guiding star, and I step into that as much as I can. I'm not going to shake in regret that I did not please more people in old age. I will wish I had freed myself from that way of thinking earlier.
Own the space you occupy.
Last month I meant to participate in #speekpeece, and like many others I found that my commitment to this endeavor was met with increased strife in my days. I did take the time to do my cleansing breaths everyday as @dreemsteem suggested. This taught me something in my approach to seeking and spreading peace... You need to
Giving yourself grace fills your cup, which in turn allows you to have the mental space to fill other people's cups. It is important to look at your roots, your intentions. In what way is your perspective influencing the life you have?
Sit with yourself and find a center in what fills you with joy, what pulls you along to thrive. Take some DEEP breaths in that headspace. It feels great.
Mantra two: Everything is already okay in the future.
I know I will adapt. I bet if you think over the hurdles you've faced, you will recall plenty of times that you felt you COULDN'T succeed. The odds were stacked against you in a way that disheartened you. What happened, you made it work somehow, didn't you?
Take a minute right now, celebrate your victories! Collect every small one that you can fit in your palms and drink them in. You did these things! Stack your big achievements, make a fort out of them. I mean... if you'd like? It could be fun, you fabulous human 😁
When nothing else makes me feel better I do a few things.
My mantras help me stay centered, not only in who I am, but who I want to be. They help me fight anxiety, feelings of uncertainty in the future. Guide me through tough times, a beacon to self-love. A mantra is a wonderful way to remind yourself of many things, with one easy phrase.
My guiding principles in life are supported by mindful acts, like carrying a handful of words to support me... I believe that each day the things we do have an impact, although maybe a small one. I want to be a loving person, and part of that journey is offering myself some of that love. Sharing that process with others who in turn may benefit from it to 😁
I hope this post gives someone else a solace to lean on, the way these ideas prop me up when I call them for help. Life is a wild journey, but everything we worry about today already turned out just the way it needed to in the future. 💚
