Embrace: Acceptance

The SECOND part of EMBRACE is ACCEPTANCE.

Just as I accept that the sun will rise and fall, I must accept myself without judgment. I must embrace myself fully + completely. No matter what I must LOVE myself.

I am coming to see the truth of our perfection in the eyes of SPIRIT.  No matter what we do in this life our soul remains whole. This level of acceptance opens me up to LIFE.

When everything is flowing according to our idea of how things should be, it’s easy to feel in harmony with the rhythms of the universe. When there is a lack of alignment between what we want and how our life is unfolding, we’re more likely to feel disharmony, stress, or frustration. Yet it is our resistance to what is happening in the present moment that intensifies our distress… our fear and the frightening stories we tell ourselves about our situation magnify our pain. 
– 21 Days of Inspiration Booklet 

I have consciously been working on accepting me for me.  I have to accept the choices I have made in this life. I have to accept the good with the bad and move forward from where I am.

And I thought I had that down because I have found true love for myself, but there is always more that reveals itself when you began to do self-reflection.

There is always more of yourself that can be accepted and loved more fully.

I am accepting that I am drawn to paper, cutting and gluing and taping, collaging.  Connecting concepts, and images and thoughts.

Accepting that I have a habit of marking in books, dog-earing pages and reading multiple books at once.

I accept that I think in terms of space. I accept that I am drawn to personal stories.

Accepting that I am a list maker +a dreamer.

I am accepting that I want to do many things, but at the same time I am drawn to focus on one task at a time, and SIMPLIFY.

I am accepting that I will get frustrated and that is okay. That I might set a goal and have to recalibrate along the way.

While musing on this I wrote a little poem:

I am idea maker, curator, reader + researcher, colors, bare feet, crossed legs, thinker + tinker, collector, spirit + soul, creator, created + union, i am youth, ancient wisdom, and now. I begin with genius wrapped in LOVE. I am flower. I bear fruit. I stand in imagination grounded by FAITH. I seek infinity. I embrace the DREAM. I ACCEPT FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR MY LIFE.

On this journey of pure acceptance I am learning about compassion for self.

Connect to your body, accept this moment, know that change is inevitable, and become clear on what you would like to see manifest. Your ability to co-create the next moment requires acceptance of the present…When your actions are motivated by love, your energy multiplies and you’re able to create anything you want. [LAW OF ATTRACTION] When you seek power and control over others, you waste energy chasing the illusion of happiness [YOU ARE BEING CONTROLLED BY THE EGO]. Set your intentions on expanding love and you will be able to manifest your desires with effortless ease. – 21 Days of Inspiration Booklet

but I can always change…

I remain unrestricted by definitions.

Part of acceptance is taking responsibility for my life and realizing that I have a choice in how I lead my life.

Acceptance is not giving up or giving it, rather it is a change of perspective.  I do not have to leave everything up to fate or find anyone or anything to blame for the circumstances I do not enjoy.

I can say yes to life.

THE ESSENCE: Acceptance is Power.

read this the next musing on EMBRACE.

Be Wonderful

♡

LaToya

Thank you for joining me on this journey of INTERIOR ALCHEMY.

Self-Acceptance (An Evolving Journey)

em•brace im-breys – verb. 1. accept (a belief, theory, change, SELF + HOME) willingly and enthusiastically.
noun. an act of accepting something (SELF + HOME) willingly or enthusiastically.

A part of self-acceptance is telling your story.  When we tell our story it can be empowering to ourselves and to others. We acknowledge our existence here.  When we tell our stories we  touch others, we connect and we heal. There are many ways to tell a story: oral, written, visual, and even in how we lead our day to day lives.

As I tell my story in a variety of ways I begin to understand myself in new ways.  I begin to grow and expand. I EVOLVE. I might journal to get out all the thoughts and feelings and insights that come to and through me, I visual journal and collage to let my story out in new ways I have never explored. I speak my story every time I interact with someone else.  My home can also tell my story.

I fully accept myself, I love myself I said. I was becoming more and more comfortable with myself each day and I was gaining a new sense of confidence... After an in person reiki experience (which involved lots of tears), I had the insight that if I truly embraced all parts of me, then there would be no parts of me that I denied (even if there are areas in my life that I want to cultivate with more love). I would release any underlying guilt of not being good enough. I would allow myself room to live my story freely, without self-imposed restrictions. I had read about self love and self acceptance and felt my mind had a good grasp on these concepts...

I was on the right track...

but this insight had to be felt and came from the heart.

So begins another cycle of the EVOLVING JOURNEY.

The only person I need to reconcile my full story with is myself. Self-Acceptance is being fully honest with ourselves. Accepting ourselves as we are - as a whole. We take the good with the less than favorable.  We begin to see challenges as opportunities in our life and always as a chance to learn and move forward. It can be a process; parts of it are lifelong. This journey calls for ACCEPTANCE + FORGIVENESS.

I ACCEPT MYSELF AS I AM.

I AM WHOLE.

When I begin to take these steps to understand my story and reconcile any feelings I may be harboring against any parts of myself, then my authentic story begins to flow. One by one I let go of false beliefs that hold me back from expressing my full potential. I begin to take full ownership of my story - I begin to design my life for my soul to thrive. I become empowered. This process allows me to live in alignment with my values. I am able to embrace vulnerabilities and share my story with others. I can even begin to share the storylines that are still evolving.

Because the story will always evolve.

And the story will always have multiple strands running through at the same time. Somewhere along the way I begin to see that all of our stories intertwine into ONE. Everyday that I can accept a new part of me, the more deeply I feel my connection to you and to all that is. And so the journey continues to evolve... The journey is not always easy, some days are actually quiet challenging, but I accept the challenge and I renew my intention each day.

What Story will you tell today? What part of the journey can you begin to embrace? How can you evolve today by accepting a new part of yourself?

RESOURCES: Living in the Light, 1,001 ways to stay in the moment, My article on Transformation in Life as Ceremony Magazine.

Be Wonderful

xx

LaToya

Thank you for joining me in {Finding Space} for INTERIOR ALCHEMY. To receive INSPIRATION and MUSINGS directly in your inbox signup here.

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Embrace: Starting Where You Are

EMBRACE:

Do you ever find yourself thinking: If only I had a bigger space... If only I could afford... If only I was good with colours... If only I knew my style... If only...

We all find ourselves wanting something we do not have or wish we were better at doing something. When I start wishing for something that I do not currently have, I have found that the first step to moving forward is to embrace what I do have.

I become AWARE of what is already in my life and what I am already capable of.  I ACCEPT that I have a choice in how I react to my current circumstances and a CHOICE in how I move ahead.

I give GRATITUDE for all that I am and all that I have been blessed with in this life.

START WHERE YOU ARE

If only I knew how long we would be here...

We are a nomadic family, we dream of moving into a bus and traveling and exploring Australia. When we first found ourselves living in a Queenslander in Cairns we thought it was temporary. As a designer I love to create space, but I held back in this house because I thought we would be leaving soon, so why put in so much effort? At first I only worked on the essentials. But we ended up staying a bit longer, and a bit longer, and a bit longer. So instead of wishing for something else I decided I had to embrace this space and make it feel like home, regardless of how long we intended to stay.

So began my journey of finding space In the process of creating home it turns out I have also been finding space to embrace myself and I have been called to share more of me and my journey.

A REFLECTION:

      

I embrace

All of me. From the accolades to the "failures". From the smiles to the tears. From the joys to the frustrations. I have been greeting my "shadow side" with open arms. As I learn from my limiting beliefs I become aware and let go and find space for expansion. As I embrace my unique self without the lenses of shoulds, coulds and don'ts I am amazed at what I unearth. I embrace myself with LOVE. I embrace myself even as fear peeks over my shoulder. I embrace courage + grow CONFIDENCE.

I am aware

I embrace divine timing. I may set out a timeline in my mind, and take inspired action to achieve it, but that does not always mean my defined results will happen "on time" - on my time. But it always happens RIGHT ON TIME. So I embrace not knowing it all. I am aware of what is. I embrace the wonder and the MAGIC I have been seeking. It does not always come dressed the way I imagined. But when I change my perspective the magic has been here all along!

I accept

I now embrace the JOURNEY without an end point. I still celebrate the milestones. I see "problems" as opportunities and dreams + desires as part of my divine mission. Life is a pilgrimage and the map is recreated every moment, because I embrace CHOICE which leads to FREEDOM. I accept this as my birthright.

I give thanks

I am grateful for all that is. I am full of gratitude for my life as it is NOW. Through this I find space for ABUNDANCE. I am grateful for all the steps that have lead me here. I am grateful for what is to come. I am grateful for continued CLARITY. I am grateful to see my fears as motivation rather than roadblocks. I am grateful for all my emotions and my ability to FEEL. I am grateful for this truly amazing life here on Earth and for my Soul that reaches beyond this plane. I am grateful for INFINITE POSSIBILITIES. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

I will continue to share more of my journey with you here in future posts, see you then. To have INSPIRATION delivered directly to your inbox sign up here.

Be Wonderful

LaToya

xx