That little light of mine...

I have to say, I was quite inspired by the last few comments on my blog recently. I was especially inspired last night by a comment post I read on someone else's blog; Jack Fit's blog: http://jackfit.blogspot.com/, under the post "It's time to Look Inside". The comment, by Rachel421, mentioned that we have to get up and re-dedicate everyday. I have thought quite a bit about that comment over the last 24 hours. This is not a new comment or new idea to me; I've heard this before and I even recognize that there are several things in my life that I need to re-commit to everyday, not just weight loss. But what if I were to give 100% everyday though? It's funny that immediately the first thought I had was- "Oh no, that's impossible. You can't do that D. What about "bad days"?" Am I making an excuse to myself to be bad??

What if I were to really expect the best from myself? I have the quote on my mirror from Nelson Mandella's 1994 Inaugural Speech; the one that says that sometimes we are afraid to let our light truly shine at its brightest. I'll type it out here for you so you don't have to go look it up if you're unfamiliar with it. It says,

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are

powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our darkness,

that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, who am I

to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented or fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be?

You are a child of God.

Your playing small doesn't serve the world.

There's nothing enlightening about

shrinking so other people won't feel

so insecure around you.

We are born to manifest

God's glory within us.

It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone.

And, as we let our light shine,

we unconsciously give other people permission

to do the same.

As we are liberated from our own fear

our presence automatically liberates others.

Nelson Mandella, 1994 Inaugural Speech

What if I were to get up everyday and decide mentally, and look at myself in the mirror and verbally commit to doing the best I can that day? I don't think I've ever done this type of thing before when it comes to myself. I've done it for other things- I do it for work; I want to be the best worker and I want my boss to feel that he made the right decision to hire me, so everyday I commit to doing the best job I can. 95% of the time I do actually do the best job I can. Of course I have my days- like everyone else. But I started committing to myself to do a better job and I actually do a better job. I actually can't take the credit for this; it wasn't my idea. Let me explain.

About a year ago I was in a predicament. I was working a job that I was strongly unsatisfied with and I didn't know how to get out of it. For months I was looking for something else and NOTHING was happening. I searched High and Low and talked to every person I knew to see if anyone knew anything. No one did. There was NOTHING out there. (Maybe you guys remember that I live in So Cal, where the unemployment rate was 11 percent this time last year-ish? Plus I live in OC which is even a little worse than LA or San Diego.) Then one day when I was particularly miserable with work I decided to take a break at a Barnes and Noble. I was rummaging through the clearance books when I stumbled upon a book called, "Happy for No Reason: 7 Steps to being Happy from the Inside Out" by Marci Shimoff. I didn't have the money at the time to buy the book, but I still sat down with it for a few minutes and skimmed through it. Well, something she said really stuck out to me. (I really recommend the book if you ever get a chance to purchase it, btw. It's a fantastic book) In the book she talks about what to do if you hate your job...hmm interesting. Of course I immediately turned to that chapter. She said to start treating your job like you loved it- and I was intrigued by this thought. Really? Could I even muster up the courage to do something so crazy? Yet at the same time, what did I have to lose? I decided to give it a try; from that day forward I was going to work my job like I loved it. I started answering the phone with a smile in my voice. I started saying hi to my co-workers and actually stayed with them a few times after work for a little colleague mingling at the local watering hole (something I NEVER did before). I gave a little more and quit watching the clock. I turned off my gchat and quit talking to my friends. And then, all of the sudden (it happened pretty quickly actually) things got so much better. I actually quit hating my job! My work performance improved dramatically and my boss was more satisfied with my work. The best part was- I was more satisfied with my job and my life. And then, when the time was right, I found the perfect job.

I became a believer.

Now, what if I applied the same idea to my weight loss journey? What if I lived my life and made my choices like I loved my body and was already skinny? What if I looked at each choice as a positive instead of a "sacrifice"? Like I asked in the beginning, what if I got up and committed to myself every morning that I was going to do my best that day to get the body I really really want? I will have the body and the confidence that I really want, and chances are, I will have it in no time. Isn't that so exciting????

I hope this post isn't too much cheese for you. I am a cheesy girl afterall. I hope more than anything that you feel inspired and that you remember why you're on this journey as well. Because we want more than what we have right now. The funny thing is- it's right here for us. We already have the ability to get skinny or become the person we want to be. We just need to make it happen. I just need to make it happen.

D