Today before my yoga class started, I overheard two women talking. One of the women had injured her wrist and was wearing a protective wrap around it. When asked what happened, the woman said, “I took a horrible fall, broke my wrist and injured my knee. It should have been a lot worse than it is, but I’m glad it wasn’t.” I immediately thought to myself, “How are you able to be here and do yoga?” The other woman asked that exact question. The injured woman replied, “It is better for me to be here and do what I can than to not come at all.” That resonated so deeply with me. It was what Oprah calls an “Aha moment” for me. This woman had every reason to not show up for class. Her wrist was broken, and in yoga you need your hands and wrist for almost everything. However, she knew that it would serve her more to show up and just be in the room than it would for her to not show up at all. How powerful is that?!?

How many times do we say to ourselves, “That didn’t work. That’s broken. I can’t do that. I’m not able right now. I’ll do it when I’m in a better position…” How many times do we not show up because things aren’t perfect or because we feel as if we can’t fully participate so why even try?

I’ve felt broken so many times in my life.  There have been moments (a lot of moments) when I just wanted to give up, run away, even die.  I’ve been hopeless, felt isolated, and depressed.  What I learned is that in each of those moments, I had a choice.  I could choose to stay there or I could get my ass up and do something.

Life isn’t perfect, and shit happens on a daily basis. Living authentically is about embracing all that life offers, good and bad, and showing up regardless. It’s about actively participating and choosing day after day to show up in your own life, your own truth. It doesn’t matter what it looks like. It doesn’t have to be pretty. I can guarantee you it won’t be perfect. If you just show up, you will move closer to whom you were created to be!

Feeling Broken Worksheet

“Nothing ever goes away until it teaches us what we need to know.”

~Pema Chodron

“I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.”

-Christopher Reeve

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