As I glow in the light of graduation from The Institute of Integrated Nutrition just this week I am wanting to speak about SELF LOVE.
September 3, 2018
How important is it? Probably the most important actualization of our lifetime.
It is a responsibility to yourself and to the family and community around you.
Whether you know it or not, you are a role model. I realized this in my 30’s when I ran a very successful health food restaurant/lunch wagon on the North Shore of Oahu called Aricia’s Beach-Inn Kitchen. And Ole Healthy’s Lunch wagon. It felt really good.
So, some “food for thought” to chew on is this.
Deep self-love is a compilation of:
Actions
Behaviors
Habits
Standards
And what SELF LOVE entails is:
1. Acceptance – this is literally NUMBER ONE, because without it there isn’t actually self-love. Forgive yourself. Mantras help to remind you when you go down that dark self-hate tunnel. Remember them, repeat them “I am enough, I have enough, I DO enough”.
2. Self -Respect – honor yourself. You are perfect as you are at this moment. Give yourself a hug of compassion and a smile of tolerance.
3. Awareness – observation of yourself can be done any time you notice that you are doing too much for others and not enough for yourself. You are just as important as everyone else. What do you like and dislike about yourself? Just name two or three things in a daily journal or a “grocery list”. Here’s something to ponder:
“I don’t know what I don’t know. I do know that I don’t know. So, at least I am aware! And, take a deep breath…
4. Knowledge – Because life cycles and goes through phases (ie discovering the world in your 20’s, thinking you know the world in your 30’s, taking care of the world in your 40’s, taking care of “your world” in your 50’s, and researching the world in your 60’s) you have plenty of time to get to know yourself. You are allowed to have standards. You are allowed to write your own story. You can change what you’ve been given and have chosen.
5. Self-Trust – Please allow others to have their own experiences. Stop trying to control everything, it’s so much effort. If you really did you would have so much more time for self-love. Here’s a fun mantra for this: “Less control equals more magic”.
BE FUN TO BE WITH whether alone or with people - BE KIND TO YOURSELF WHEN YOU RELAPSE.
Your friend- Aricia
