Why Your Life of Me Needs To Be a Top Priority
before we begin, if you’d like to hear the music that was humming softly in the background as I wrote you this letter, simply press play. enjoy.
Dear Friend,
who feels the pressure of doing it all for everyone else,
but not reserving any time for yourself,
This letter was written for you today. Sit down, cozy up, and hear me as I say the words below to you with so much love and understanding, but also, with the knowing of the regret you’ll have if you don’t choose to make changes starting today.
Here we go.
♡♡♡
If I asked you to create "a life of me" for this year,
would you think of it as a selfish or strong thing to do?
Answer yourself honestly, right now, and let’s see if by the time you come to the end of this letter, if you still feel the same way.
Because here’s the thing.
We are all given one life.
ONE life.
One opportunity to make the absolute best of it with the days that we are blessed with on this earth.
One life to hold memories that we love, that will hold joy and happiness and sadness and love and anger.
One that will hold memories we never want to forget,
one that will hold memories we wish we could.
But in all of that, when you look back at the life you're creating, do you want to see one that didn't include you?
One where you poured into time with everyone else,
where you poured into your career,
where you poured into your family,
where you poured into everything else around you,
but left your own self feeling empty?
This year, choose to step in to who the person is. the person that is waiting for you,
the person you're meant to become,
choose to pour in to your own heart as much as you pour into everyone else.
To create a life that you absolutely love.
One moment, one memory,
one day, one week, one month at a time.
But I wouldn’t ask you to do this if I wasn’t going to be right there with you, too.
So take a little stroll down Last Year’s Lane with me, won’t you?
I absolutely LOVE to spend time outdoors, and when I stumble upon spaces that catch my eye the moment I see them, chances are I would gasp and soak it all in for hours.
One of these places is Pensacola Beach, a beautiful white sand beach with water and waves in hues varying from the darkest teal to the lightest pale blue, a scene that is simply something to behold.
The moment my feet feel the sand separating between my toes as I walk towards the water,
when I can smell the salty air, or see the seagulls and pelicans simply gliding across the clear skies, it immediately causes me to exhale.
I exhale stress and inhale peace.
I exhale sadness and inhale joy.
I feel like my own kind of Moana, because the water literally calls me,
every single day.
Spending time there is one of my greatest joys,
but what may surprise you is that last year I didn't make it to the beach *nearly* as much as I wanted to.
Because I let excuses and priorities and schedules and needs of people around me become more important than what I needed for my own soul.
Because it wasn't "convenient" due to the time of day I wanted to go.
Because it was a 40 minute drive each way.
Because I wanted to spend more time there than my schedule would allow, so why spend only a few minutes there if I knew I would disappoint myself not being able to stay there longer?
Excuse after excuse after excuse.
But not this year.
Today, I may be asking you to step into the life of YOU in 2022,
but I wouldn't ask you to walk that path if I wouldn't be walking it right there with you, too.
Believe me when I say, that in 2022, I am stepping in to making it the year of me - not from a perspective of "I'm Kristin the queen and all shall do whatever I say because I'm the queen" but rather,
"I'm simply a woman who is going to take care of herself just as much as the people she takes care of around her. Because my life is important, too."
This year, will you agree with me to let your excuses not hold you back,
and step into the path of the person who is waiting for you to live your life in a way that YOU absolutely love?
We’re at the beginning of a whole new year, and it’s currently January of 2022.
This means that we’re still in chapter 1 of the 12 that are reserved just for us and our stories as individuals this year.
These chapters are reserved for you and you alone, and they’re being written every minute of the day whether or not you want to be the author.
So what kind of a story are your days going to write?
If, years from now, someone sat down with a book of your life,
reflecting upon and reading about the moments that stood out to you the most,
what would they read about?
What stories will you fill the pages of your life with?
Could you choose to read more books,
swaying softly in a hammock in your own backyard,
feeling the sweet summer breeze across your cheeks?
Or would you choose to bring a big dream of yours to life that scares you and makes your heart beat a little louder,
but you know if you don’t, years from now you will regret it?
Perhaps, it's as simple as starting to go for more walks,
or going to one of the places that brings you joy,
even if it's only a few steps away from your front door.
Perhaps it means you choose to pick up that paintbrush and spend time learning how to paint,
because your heart gets fluttery when you see the paint and paper create something beautiful designed with your own hands.
Or perhaps it means you choose to go for more walks on the beach,
and simply sit and soak in the sunrises and sunsets without worrying about all of the other things you need to tend to in that moment.
What is something that years and years from now,
you’ll look back at and be proud of yourself for starting?
And what is something that years and years from now,
you’ll look back and be proud of yourself for stopping?
Choose one thing that you want to begin this year,
even that you can begin today, to make yourself a priority,
specifically as we step into the year that is 2022.
And before you tell yourself that it’s too late to start,
is it, really?
Is it ever too late to start?
Because although our calendars may see January to December to be what defines a year,
there’s no set timeline on our lives as to when we really get to make the decisions to make the changes to create the year that we want to see.
So a year from now, what will you look back at yourself and be proud that you made it a priority for yourself?
Not for anyone else … something that you made a priority for you.
Because every day, every. single. day, you are given a choice.
You can choose to fill up your own cup, even if for just a few moments, or you can choose to be present, always, for everyone else.
What would it look like for you if you took just a few minutes to yourself, every single day, to do something just for you?
.Here's to taking more time to do things just for you in 2022, starting right now.
The pages that will make up your life are waiting to be written.
It's simply waiting for you to begin it.
Until next time,
Kristin