"It Starts With Ourselves"

Since I was a very young child, I was given the gift of deep compassion for other people’s pain. For some reason it was almost as if I could jump into other people’s bodies and see through their eyes and hear through their ears. I knew how they felt and it would literally break my heart.
Through the years, I have learned tools on how to protect myself from other people’s pain. Being a sponge was something I had to overcome, especially living in big cities such as Denver, Seattle, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. Working closely with those dying of aids, cancer, or old age has been one of my many paths.Compassion for these individuals has been a huge part of my life.
There is one big element that is missing in this equation. Most of us (including myself) are devoid of compassion for ourselves. For me I don’t pat myself on the back for overcoming the many challenges that I have had. Giving myself an “attagirl” for getting through loss and devasation such as death, emotional, financial and relationship struggles was and is way overdue.
We all have universal challenges. I know I am not terminally unique. Let’s begin with giving the love, understanding, and compassion to and for ourselves. We can start by using a compassionate inner dialogue, and self soothing ourselves with complimenting our personal victories, Take some time to nurture and spoil yourself, by giving yourself one of your favorite treats. You may enjoy getting a massage, buying yourself a gift, spending time out in nature by yourself. Maybe have tea with a friend to brag about your triumphant, but difficult, victories that you have overcome in this lifetime.
We are all warriors and we are all fighting some kind of battle, and it is time to celebrate our victories right now.This is a hard curriculum, but throwing a personal party, to honor your soul, is in order right now. You made it to this very point and you deserve a gigantic glorifiaction. You did it, and as we all know, this life stuff is not for whimps! Life is not easy!