I told a student today that "we are never perfect in the 'we're done' sense, but we are perfect for the moment." There are things along this health journey that I do REALLY well sometimes and things that I don't do nearly as well. And on different days, those things can be the exact same. So while I was incredibly profound for my student (I think...), that statement resonated with me today. I can only be what I am at that moment in time and that, by nature, is perfect. I can improve on my actions and my responses to life after the moment has passed, but the decision I make in that moment is perfect.
What does that essentially mean to me? I can't beat myself up over what I did three hours ago, yesterday, last week...etc... This journey of healthy lifestyle is just that, a journey through life. It is a journey that has a finite destination, because how can you go somewhere on a journey if you don't know where you're going? It is not the direct path between two points in time and space but a winding road of ups, downs, and side-to-sides.
Words are powerful tools along this journey; both words you say to yourself and words you say to others. Recognizing that I am the most perfect me I can be at any given time in the present makes it so I don't brood over the failures of the past that will cripple my future successes. I cannot be successful if I've already given myself the handicap of being pre-occupied by all the things I didn't do right. It allows me to be kinder to myself in spite of my mistakes and allows me to forgive myself for my shortcomings.
I'm not saying that this should make me stagnant in the fact that I can keep repeating the same bad things over and over again, but what I should be able to do is look at what I've done and objectively identify what went "wrong" and be able to fix it for next time without feeling bad about what I did last time.
I'm not sure I really have a "conclusion" to this post today, I just have thoughts that have fallen out of my head.
I love this post. I just caught up on your entire year of blogging, and I am so inspired, Karen. First, what is the app you're using for weight lifting (text or message me if you don't want to name it here). Also, thank you for sharing all of your inspiration, struggles, thoughts, etc. I have been struggling for the last few months, and I've fallen into the trap of not reaching out for help. I just keep going through my day, trying to tell myself that I'm fine. But I'm not fine. I'm in a funk and I don't really know why. I know I'll snap out of it soon, but until I do, know that it's nice to read someone else's ups and downs. You can revel in their successes and know that it can happen for you too, and you can understand their disappointments. Thanks.
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