Burned out and depleted, I slowly crawled back to the core of my existence. Along the way, I rebuilt expectations for myself\u2014ones rooted in genuine fulfillment, not the impossible standards I once set to prove my worth based on old childhood stories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Coming home to myself meant embracing who I am, separate from everyone else\u2019s narratives. I\u2019ve learned to unapologetically take as much or as little space as I need because it\u2019s mine to occupy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The art of coming home to myself is also about understanding that my mind, body, and spirit need more than just rest to be rejuvenated. No amount of sleep can compensate if my waking hours are spent maintaining unfulfilling relationships, overextending my energy, denying myself what I truly need and want, or performing to please others. I can\u2019t count the times I\u2019ve caught myself acting differently around different people\u2014whether friends or family\u2014never strangers, oddly enough. While it may sometimes be \u201cnormal and necessary\u201d to fit in and get by, at what cost? Deep down, it\u2019s exhausting to be everyone except myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Certain words, actions, and behaviors can ignite one person and extinguish another\u2019s flame entirely. My helpful nudges may accidentally stir another\u2019s shadows. So, I\u2019ve learned to let it be\u2014to let others find their way without interfering unless it affects me directly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We all walk different tightropes, balancing different demons. Staying curious means gently questioning which parts of my story are my own and which echo others\u2019 expectations. Some waves pull us under this vast ocean of influence; others guide us to shore. But it isn\u2019t the direction we swim that defines us\u2014it\u2019s the stories we tell ourselves while we\u2019re in the water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Think about that\u2014how true!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Freedom isn\u2019t just about walking away from what dims my spirit\u2014it\u2019s about running toward what makes my soul dance. I\u2019m a fierce advocate for gauging worth by my standards, not someone else\u2019s measuring stick. A wise woman once reminded me: \u201cDon\u2019t let joy play hide-and-seek.\u201d My journey back to myself reveals all the wisdom I\u2019ve always had\u2014I just needed to tune in. I love hearing my frequency, not out of ego but out of trust in my instincts and experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Unlearning has been my daily job. I\u2019m the detective of my beliefs\u2014keeping what resonates, discarding the rest. My enlightenment? It’s messy but magical. I\u2019ll keep swimming against the current, climbing onto shores unknown. Breathless, perhaps\u2014but invigorated. This space is, and has always been, mine to claim.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Burned out and depleted, I slowly crawled back to the core of my existence. Along the way, I rebuilt expectations for myself\u2014ones rooted in genuine fulfillment, not the impossible standards I once set to prove my worth based on old childhood stories. Coming home to myself meant embracing who I am, separate from everyone else\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":862,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,3,40],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-861","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-critical-thinking","category-empowerment","category-storytelling"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/prolificpreambles.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/861","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/prolificpreambles.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/prolificpreambles.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prolificpreambles.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prolificpreambles.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=861"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/prolificpreambles.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/861\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":863,"href":"https:\/\/prolificpreambles.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/861\/revisions\/863"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prolificpreambles.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/862"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/prolificpreambles.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=861"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prolificpreambles.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=861"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prolificpreambles.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=861"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}