being.beloved

Been thinking about all the spaces and places in our lives that we are told, in subtle and not-so-subtle ways, that we're simply not good enough.

If we could ONLY do or be such and such, then we will have arrived

or so the thinking goes.

I think you might know what I'm talking about??

You know, those ideas that define you as 'less than'...

"you're not smart enough for this, you're not pretty enough for that, you're not fast enough to compete, you're not young enough to matter anymore and the list goes on and on and on ..."

Really, insert just about any adjective in this statement:

"You're not _____ enough."

And I know you've heard it many times over.

So, it leads me to ask the question, "Where are the places in our lives that

we hear the following words?":

You are perfectly complete just the way you are.

I love the way you're so perfectly YOU.

No accessories needed.

Hmmm ... I don't know about you, but those words are heard in far fewer places in my life than the critical, self-doubt inducing words. They creep in through all sorts of cracks, perpetually oozing in through the corners, which makes them much harder to hold at bay. Truth be told, they're rather relentless, really.

Just for today,

{because often that's all that I can handle}

I've decided to listen to the voice that calls me beloved

and with any luck and a whole lotta intention,

I hope to do that tomorrow, too.