“Today you are You, that is Truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.”
— Dr. Seuss
The question, “What do you love about yourself?” holds the key to your power and your unique sense of being… it holds the answer to why you are here! As you were growing up, did anyone ever ask you, “Hey! What do you love about yourself?” Perhaps you were lucky and someone did; perhaps you weren’t so lucky and you grew up thinking you weren’t enough. Whatever your answer, LYF believes that question isn’t being asked enough.
We live in an extremely fast-paced society where competition is praised and compassion is barely mentioned. With the rise in depression, anxiety, and suicide rates throughout society, it seems that humanity is missing something incredibly substantial. More and more people have more POSSESSIONS yet are becoming less satisfied with the quality of their lives. Humanity is accumulating a material abundance, while the planet is shifting in such a way that perhaps one day we won’t have a sustainable habitat.
As a life long environmentalist, I began to ponder if perhaps the missing ingredient between how we treat ourselves, others and the planet was due to a lack of LOVE in the world. Love, this mysterious yet powerful vibration that we all feel. When you become one with the love vibration, anything is possible. This might sound like a bunch of hippie nonsense, but what if that is the true cause! It makes sense! When you feel good about yourself, you treat others with love, and you inevitably have a better relationship with your environment. As creatures of nature, humans are inevitably part of this indirect interconnected system on Earth. So why wouldn’t our actions have a ripple effect to the rest of the planet? Think back to a point in your life when a stranger shared a smile with you. How did that interaction make you feel? I bet you were filled with immense joy!
In recent years, I have been learning to understand and show compassion to myself when emotions like sadness have surfaced. In a moment of my life when I was feeling this sadness, I was in New York City for the very first time. I remember feeling so lucky to be walking the NYC streets; I was in awe of how beautiful it all looked. As I was walking, there was this guy walking in front of me. We both made eye contact, and he greeted me with such a beautiful smile. As I reflect back on that moment, I automatically am filled with joy. What a simple yet powerful act a smile can bring to another person. The truth is, no one knows the battles that each and every human being is going through. Smiling can bring so much joy to people; It brings love… it brings healing energy. As much as we sometimes need to be alone, the truth is, we also need each other to survive.
I challenge you today to love yourselves a little bit more than you did yesterday. Bring joy to those around you and begin to foster a better relationship with our beautiful planet. None of us are perfect; we are all perfectly imperfect. Each and everyone is a beautiful mosaic, a masterpiece of art in the making. Look within your heart, feel, be grateful that you are alive. As Dr. Seuss once said, “Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is none alive who is Youer than You.”
- Monica