FORGIVE…Forgive who?
Forgive YOU! Why is it that we go
through life being taught that forgiveness is important and we should forgive
others yet we have the hardest time forgiving ourselves? We are who we are because of the experiences
we have had – the good, bad and the ugly.
Yet it seems we continuously punish ourselves for the bad and ugly. Everything we go through in life teaches us
something. Often greatness comes out of
those very dark experiences we’ve gone through.
It may sound hokey but what if you were to look at yourself in the
mirror and say I’M SORRY. Those 2 words
when said with the truest of intentions have the ability to change
everything. You could say… I’m sorry I
hurt you. I’m sorry I didn’t believe in
you. I’m sorry I held you back.
Why do we hold ourselves back but we are the so quick to
support and motivate those around us? We
hold ourselves back from enjoying things that come our way because of FEAR.
We often don’t feel we deserve good things because of those past
experiences. Why can we so easily
encourage our family and friends to “Go for it” or say “You deserve this” yet
we can’t give ourselves that same pep talk?
Sometimes it’s because we fear the unknown. At the end of the day, I believe our desire
is to be happy…so why do we allow fear to hold us back from achieving
this? You can talk your way out of doing
just about anything when fear is leading the conversation.
A few years back, I had started working out consistently. I was feeling stronger both mentally and
physically as a result. As I scrolled through
my newsfeed on Facebook, I came across an ad for a 5K obstacle race with foam,
slip and slides, and mud. It peaked my
interest so I clicked on it and started looking at the photos and obstacle
course details and the seed was planted.
I had not done anything with that seed yet…I just planted it. Almost instantly the FEAR set in: I can’t do
this. I am not athletic. I have knee problems. What if I mess up? What if I can’t finish it? What if people laugh at me? All these emotions hit me - just because I
planted a seed about possibly doing it.
I took a step back. Talked to my
friends who were also on a fitness journey and instead of allowing fear to take
us out of the game - we formed a team to get ready for this race. Figured, we would help each other get through
it. Once we signed up – there was no
backing out. In my mind…I paid – I was
doing this one way or another. My
trainer and I changed up the workouts to get me conditioned and ready
physically. My friends and I supported
each other and got ourselves mentally ready for this challenge. I am proud to say that I not only did that
race but 2 other races.
Believe me, I am still not an athlete. I still have knee issues. The difference now is; I don’t let those
things take me out of the game before it starts. I used the fear as the fire I needed to get
me where I needed to be. We all have
this within us. Make your fear your
motivator. I can think back to other
moments in my life where fear took hold and didn’t let go because I didn’t
believe that I deserved something or didn’t think I could do it. There were times that I stayed in
relationships because I believed that was all I deserved. In order to grow and evolve…we must forgive
ourselves for the people that we once were.
I took a moment and looked at myself in the mirror and said I’m
sorry. In that moment, the clouds
parted, the sun emerged and all was forgiven.
I was finally able to break the hold that fear had over me.
Remember, life is precious. You should not be your own worst enemy. You should be your biggest cheerleader. Be Fearless.
Be Bold. Take Risks. LIVE and most importantly FORGIVE
yourself. Continue to grow and
change. Use your experiences to help get
to where you’d like to be. Get out of
your own way. Turn your fears into the
fire within you.
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