by the Sea

" Cut Yourself Some Slack "

May 02 2021

by Reverend Robin B. Haruna

Real self-care doesn’t come from a belief we are broken and need to be whipped into shape or changed into something else. It’s not trying to “fix” ourselves, but about nourishing ourselves.

The dualistic mindset is essentially binary => either/or thinking. It “knows” by comparison, opposition, differentiation and uses descriptive words like good/evil, pretty/ugly, smart/stupid, ignoring that there may be 100 degrees between two ends of each spectrum

Doing our best is about taking action from our heart and changes moment to moment. It is not about making comparisons.

If you have thrived in some area – great! If not, if all you did was make it through, surviving is a remarkable accomplishment – it’s enough!

        Things that can be equally true

You are resilient              and             need a break

You gave your all            and             need to back out

You are independent       and             still need others

You were sure                 and             things changed

You are kind                   and             have boundaries

Others have it worse        and             your pain is valid

You did your best            and            now you know more

Shift the narrative from slack as negative to slack as essential. We need empty space to accommodate inevitable high winds of life.

Cut yourself some slack; take a break; give yourself some grace, let God love you, be gentle with yourself.