Do Things that Scare You

Good morning, everyone and happy weekend! I'm writing to you all from the beautiful Lake Cushman today... I'm only here for the weekend and then it will be back to life as usual. I wanted to talk today about something that's been on my mind lately, and that is the importance of doing new things and doing things that scare you. When I say scare you, what I mean is things that give you a newfound excitement about life. Things that open your eyes and make you smile. Things that help rewire your brain by taking you out of complacency, comfort and numbness and into a place of creativity, focus and strength.

I've been living in complacency off and on my entire life... every now and again I’ll get the urge to try something new. I did that when I moved across the country to attend college; I moved away from something I'd known my entire life and people I grew up with, to a place where I didn't know anyone. I took a leap of faith.

I did that when I decided to go to massage school, having so many doubts about whether or not I was strong enough to do such a physically demanding job.

I did that when I decided to write a book about my adventures on the east coast, and I ended up putting it into a story that I created out of only my imagination and the skills I developed over the years. I did that countless times when I would put myself out there when applying for jobs with the State and my brief stint for the Post Office, which was a tremendous amount of stress and a grand adventure that challenged me! I was never very good at promoting myself and in these instances, I was always a nervous wreck and always pretending to be someone I’m not. Looking back, I appreciate the fact that I didn’t get those jobs, because then I wouldn’t have found my true calling as a Massage Therapist and healer.

I've done many things that scared me and I've never regretted it, because it gave me this new excitement about life and this new knowledge and appreciation of my strengths. Most of the things I've done I wasn't naturally skilled at, and I did them alone; just me and my thoughts to guide me as I fumbled through it.

One thing I learned about myself while going through challenging times is that I always find a way to survive and make it through on my own. My strength is often doubted at first, people question me and what I'm capable of, but I've shown time and time again throughout my entire life, that I will find a way, and I usually do.

This year I’m especially aware of how I’ve become sleepy… and one of the reasons I have is because I’ve relied on people who let me down, expecting them to be there, to support me and always have my back. But I can’t expect this and the people who truly care about being in my life will show themselves. I should never have to beg someone to appreciate me or be around for me.

This year I’m learning to look at life through a different lens; take in the moments and do things that challenge me and make me feel excited! I’ve looked around and noticed that the people who are brimming with light, optimism and excitement are the people who have struggled; they have struggled and overcome, and they’ve learned about themselves in the process. They’ve witnessed their own strength through the struggle and come out ahead, and that is a beautiful thing ❤️

Just a few things I’ve been working on this year is a second edition of my two novels, which I’ll be doing a book signing for in October; I started a new side hustle that made me uncomfortable at first, but now I’m excited about and has been a lot of fun navigating. I got a new tattoo that I’ve wanted to get for many years and I’m taking care of some debt that has been weighing over my head… I’m tackling all of this on my own, as my own cheerleader and support.

I want to leave you with three very important things:

We are stronger than we ever thought possible; but sometimes our brains are wired towards comfort and complacency.

The things that make us uncomfortable, scared and that challenge us are often the things we remember and appreciate.

Though we may have a support system that we cherish, we must first know ourselves, love ourselves and rely on our own strength to pull us through tough times.

I hope you all have a great weekend and all my friends who are running in the Lake Fair races I wish you luck and hope you do well!