S2 E31 Owning our humanness

MIND. BODY. PURPOSE.

This month we've been discussing systems to put into place to help us achieve the goals we desire.

One of the identities we want to take on, is one of someone who is compassionate-- able to see things from others' perspectives, and understand their experiences from a place of love. In our search for ways to practice compassion, we found that compassion is best practiced first on ourselves.

Oftentimes we are willing to accept the happy, positive parts of ourselves, but genuine compassion is being able to understand ALL parts of who we are...and that includes our mistakes and shortcomings. Self-compassion is not a way of judging ourselves positively, but is a way of relating to ourselves kindly, embracing ourselves as we are, flaws and all. By honoring the limitations of our own human imperfection, we can be more forgiving of others' mistakes.

MIND: Make friends with yourself

True friends strive to understand one another. We can deepen our relationship with ourselves by seeing ourselves in a softer light.

Thing about trying to understand yourself the way you would a close friend, or someone you love unconditionally.

BODY: Gift comfort to your body

As women, we naturally give comfort to others. I can think of so many times that I have comforted a child or spouse-- rubbing their back, wiping tears, pushing hair behind their ears, or pulling them close. Are we showing that same comfort to ourselves?

Anything we can do to improve how we feel physically gives us a dose of self-compassion.

We need physical compassion. Maybe we ask a spouse or loved one for a hug when we're feeling down, or make time for a pedicure or a mid-day nap. Cook or order ourselves a nourishing meal, massage our feet or go for a walk. Any way we can use supportive touch to help us feel calm, safe, and showing self compassion in a physical manner.

PURPOSE: Embody charity as a state of being

Offering love to ourselves and others will always sustain us.

If we can offer ourselves compassion, by extension, charity is what we will experience. We will embody the pure love of Christ as a state of being, rather than something we do.

A former prophet of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, President Thomas Monson, teaches: “Charity is having patience with someone who has let us down. It is resisting the impulse to become offended easily. It is accepting weaknesses and shortcomings. It is accepting people as they truly are. It is looking beyond physical appearances to attributes that will not dim through time. It is resisting the impulse to categorize others.”

The more we are able to keep our hearts open to ourselves, the more we are able to open them up to others.

We can embody charity by being generous with our acceptance of ourselves, by offering compassion and understanding to our human qualities, and seeing value in all of who we are.

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