I’ve never cared much for Valentine’s Day…. Some were lovely…. some were filled with tears & smeared mascara. What I really disliked was the overbearing societal pressure that this day on the calendar was supposed to be magical AND if it wasn’t there must be something wrong with you or your life!
It doesn’t help that red & pink are my least favorite colors…. so Hallmark lost me there…. and hearts are WAYYY too girly for me. You may be laughing if you know me at all…….considering I only like 4-wheeling when there’s mud, my favorite part of being in the Amazon was trudging through a fierce river waist deep with my clothes on, & jui jitsu makes me smile! Ok… I’ll admit I do love stilettos!
So…… why am I blabbing on about a holiday that doesn’t get my love?
My own interpretation or maybe better put – my intention for this day of girly hearts, commercialism, overpriced boxes of chocolate, really hideous- sparkly-sappy drug store cards, & runny mascara for the masses of women across this Valentine’s Day obsessed country….. SELF LOVE!
Love is wonderful. It has its very own rosy scent of lusciousness, its own glitter that doesn’t make a mess on the floor, and a sweetness that would put Hersey out of business. Yet where love begins is not with someone we can point at, it begins with…(as the king of pop… Michael Jackson sings)- “the man (meaning… us too ladies) in the mirror”.
When is the last time you looked in the mirror and acknowledged the unique qualities you bring to the world? The parts that make you – YOU! (Is this when you stop reading because you’re not into self-help books?… stay with me!)
Self-love is a tough thing. It’s undoubtedly easier to be harsh with that face looking back at you, and declare all of the reasons why you aren’t lovable. The beauty of self-love is that when you stop battling the demons within…. you might ACTUALLY be present to enjoy the beauty and love around you….the sparkling jewels in your life: precious friends who have stuck with you through painful struggles, deranged family members we share genes with and wonder how, parents who have supported us through the years even after our tantrums, siblings whom we share countless memories with, purring kitties, panting dogs, or the children you so graciously and unconditionally love (and taxi everywhere)!
If you’ve ever met anyone who radiates self-love (NOT self-admiration… we all know those people – yuck!) these self-lovey folks exude a “pheromone” that notifies the world they are a juicy bundle of pleasure to be around! They have very little noise going on between their ears, allowing them to be fully present in each moment. Not just physically present – they seem to glow! My point of this lengthy web-based blog post is to say …… that this can and should be you!
We are all capable and deserving of self-love. AND….any external love that might come with a box of chocolates or a love-professing Facebook post is simply the cherry on top of our already perfectly swirled peanut butter sunday with extra whip cream (and crumbled butterfingers……Insert your own mouthwatering recipe or ice cream version of you). When you discover self-love, or finally decide to gift that long-deserving inner kindness &
appreciation for the dude or dudette in the mirror, you’ll realize you don’t need the cherry to enjoy the sunday. If you have a cherry or find one some day it’s a cheery red topping to an already perfect you!
Take time today to do something nice for yourself, a moment to look around and realize the beauty surrounding you, AND pause while brushing your teeth to acknowledge the many reasons why the world is a better place because of the perfectly-imperfect YOU! (I admittedly don’t understand hashtags – despite my brilliant friend Stephanie’s attempt to explain it…. but if I did I’d go with #self-compassion, #self-kindness, #you’rebeautifulwithorwithoutcherries #appreciateyouNOW #SELFLOVEISSEXY, #ILOVETHATIMAKEMYSELFLAUGH)
(Oh and excuse my grammatically imperfect post – very little time to edit today – and believe me I accept and love my imperfect writing skills – though not what I declare as my gift to the world… they are what they are – and I love me anyway)
WITH LOVE & LOTS OF SELF LOVE – MINUS THE CONCEITED KIND,
Heidi