a lil' self lovin

On our last day in Costa Rica the coaches leading the retreat had us sit for a few minutes in the beautiful outdoor yoga pavilion to partake in a final exercise of self-love. This exercise consisted of writing a letter to ourselves which would be sent in the following weeks post retreat, the idea being that it would serve as a reminder once thrust back into the "real world" of all we had learned and experienced during our magical time together.

Have you ever written yourself a letter of any kind, let alone a love letter? It may feel like a pretty silly practice--I know when I first held the pen in my hand I stared at the blank card and thought what the heck do I say to myself? This is a little goofy. 

But then I stopped thinking with my ego and just let go (which could honestly be the tag line for my book on how-to-live-most-happily). I let my spirit quickly write this short and sweet note to myself without interruption from insecurities. Without re-reading what I wrote, I sealed the sucker up and handed it over to my coaches. The best thing about receiving my note a few days ago (besides the fact it was snail mailed and holy heck do I love me some snail mail) was that I had no memory of what I had written--it was as if I were seeing the words for the first time; as if someone else entirely had sent me this card. Even my handwriting is slightly off from my normal penmanship! Kinda trippy, right?

I debated on whether or not it would be "cool" to share this with you all here--admittedly it's a bit humbling (read: embarrassing) to showcase--but I think my readers, in all of their wonderfulness, will understand the point of my  posting it. Plus, as a line from my favorite movie says, "The only true currency in this bankrupt world is what we share with someone else when we're uncool...":

"Miss Trish, my darling girl-

There's no denying that deep within your glorious soul there has always dwelled a sparkling, shiny, powerful light. Since birth you have had a gift to share, but I know thru the years it has been difficult to really acknowledge this--to activate it. I just wanted you to know that now is your time--now is all there ever is.  I wanted to tell you that you are ready...and that not only do I wholly, completely, unconditionally love you but I will never, ever leave you. Shine, beautiful one. Soar. Play. Laugh. Share. Be. Trust. Connect. Travel. Explore. Write. LOVE. Always love. You will live beyond your wildest dreams; you will help others live beyond theirs. Me & You, kid. 

I love your guts,

me."

I've said it before--the one person you are stuck with for your entire life, is yourself.  If you can't learn to make the effort in ensuring it's a positive relationship by practicing a lil self lovin' now and again then...well...life is going to be a heck of lot less enjoyable. I can guarantee it.

So, what would you lovingly tell yourself in a moment of uncool? 

I bet you'd be surprised to see how awesome you think you are :)

In Gratitude,

Trish