Loving Oneself...

I read a short article by Arti Shah. For those unfamiliar with her I can share that she is an actress and currently on stage in the West End of London performing the role of Paddington (she is in the bear costume).

There was a line she wrote that said, ‘if you don’t love yourself, how can you expect others too’. For context, this was in relation to her not being very tall and many years ago contemplating surgery to extend the length of her legs. She didn’t go ahead as she realised, ‘if I don’t love who I am, how can I expect anybody else to love me’?

I find this very powerful, as sometimes we can all be hard on ourselves for how we look, how we did at something, what others may think of us and lots of other things.

For me what Arti puts forward here is reality, truth and compassion – I am the source and whatever feelings and emotions arise as a result of anything, come from within me. Therefore, if I can learn to love myself for the good, the bad and the ugly this can be helpful in finding a way forward.

That’s not to say we shouldn’t review things, find new paths and challenge ourselves however that’s different to berating, punishing and self-flagellating ourselves.

What realisations have you had recently or over the years that are good reminders and something you might pass on to others?