Practicing

Some words of encouragement on a Thursday, over a cup of iced coffee and a side of sunrise.

We become what we practice. Choose your practices with care, and an eye on becoming the person you most want to be. Don’t like the results? You can change your practices.

Forgive yourself for your very human mistakes and treat yourself with kindness. (Why bother when you may be feeling beat down and unworthy? Precisely because you’re feeling that way.) If nothing else you are worthy of kindness from yourself. We 100% all make mistakes. We can choose to learn from them.

Feelings are that – only feelings. There is no requirement that emotions be what do your thinking for you. Feel your feelings. Process your thoughts. Act with consideration and willful intention. So much less drama when our emotions are not left in charge.

Breathe. Take time for stillness and self-reflection.

Practice non-attachment. Clinging to objects and expectations creates chaos; reality doesn’t care about our expectations. Often our own expectations are enough to create our pain, stress, and unhappiness. Let that shit go.

You will be criticized. You will hurt. You will face disappointment. You will feel sad and you will feel angry. You will fail. You will struggle. These are all part of the human experience. You’ll also feel joy. You will feel merriment. You will laugh. You will endure. There are verbs involved, and real work to do. This is true for everyone and it is statistically unlikely that you are uniquely cursed.

Begin again when you fail. You will fail, everyone does. Begin again with each sunrise. Begin again with each disappointment. Embrace impermanence. This too will pass.

Unhappy now? It’s only a moment. You are your own cartographer. The journey is the destination. Keep walking. Keep practicing. Incremental change over time is a real thing. We really do become what we practice.

Are you ready? It’s time to begin again.