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In the age of social media, blogs, podcasts, gosh you-name-it, it is SO easy to compare ourselves to COMPLETE strangers! This celebrity has voluptuous PERFECT hair. That blogger gets to travel to all these EXOTIC locations. This totally random account I follow on Instagram has the most meticulously, beautifully decorated home & how in the heck is it ALWAYS clean?!
But we (and by we, I really mean me) ALWAYS forget that what we’re seeing is a curated highlight reel. We see the 2 or 3 prettiest photos out of probably 50 that were taken. And I get it, that’s the business and brand they’ve spent hours creating! But let’s see some of the nitty gritty behind the scenes action.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve found myself wishing that my home looked like the ones on Instagram or that my body looked like the blogger I obsessively follow. And let me tell you what, sister…that is not fun for ANYONE.
So why am I choosing to bare my soul to the world? Because there are a handful of complete strangers that have made me change the way I look at myself & that ain’t no easy feat (just ask my husband)! These people, they are my golden nuggets. They fuel me to embrace who I am & to not be ashamed of it. Rather than that, to be PROUD of it, to LOVE it, to SHARE it with others.
SO! Here goes nothing…here are the reasons WHY I’m choosing to share my story with you & to share all of it; the good, the bad, the highs, the lows, the grit & the grace.
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To Inspire
There is nothing quite like listening to a podcast or reading a book or hearing a song or watching a movie that just hits you STRAIGHT in the gut. You know the feeling…knocks you off your feet, all the air just escapes your lungs & you feel it in the deepest parts of your bones. It makes you want to get off your couch and DO something. You get this sense of “I’m gonna take on the freakin’ world” mentality. I want to spread THAT kind of inspiration. (Here’s looking at you, Rachel Hollis!)
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To Encourage
It’s hard man, life is hard. Some days, weeks, months, years are so dark & they feel like they’re going to suck the life right out of you. Like the hurt, the pain, the sorrow will NEVER end. But it does, the sun rises, the seasons change & we inevitably will need to pick ourselves up. I have been so fortunate to have a constant support system in my life to continually encourage me through each hardship & it’s something I’ll cherish forever. It is so important to encourage one another to keep on keepin’ on.
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To Empower
Be YOU & no one else! There is not a single person on this planet that is going to be a better version of you, than YOU. I’m learning how to own & love every single part of me, which to be totally honest, is a daily struggle. After years of self deprecation & self loathing, I’m ready to unapologetically be me & I want to empower others to feel the same kind of scary, but exhilarating, freedom.
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To Celebrate
I honestly don’t think there is enough joy & celebration in this life! We move from one task on our never ending to-do list to the next, without any pause for celebration. While I’m not suggesting popping champagne for that extra load of laundry (although, sometimes I do), I am talking about celebrating the big moments & the fact that we are here on this earth – breathing, walking, living life. I’m not so naive to think that life is always going to be rainbows & cotton candy, but we are SO lucky to be here, we need to celebrate that fact.
Literally, so nervous I could throw up. But I’m doing this, I’m going to be COMFORTABLE with being UNCOMFORTABLE. I’ll make mistakes along the way, but I hope you all can understand that I’m FAR from perfect, but I do want to make a DIFFERENCE. No matter how small it may be. This is me.
Grit & Grace Blog 