Soul good to talk to you

Sleep.

I can feel it calling to me. And yet I’m unwilling to offer myself what I need. My book submission deadline feels like it’s running, not inching, towards me. I know I’m in the homestretch. I know it’s a phase and so every morning I show up at my computer rising before the sun.

Which got me thinking, why is self-compassion so hard?

I think it’s in part because we trigger our compassion response through our senses of sight and hearing. We are moved when we see others struggling, exhausted, or scared. We hear their neglected needs in the stories they share with us. And we get a double dose when we see and hear them - their faces and energy speaking a thousand words.

But we don’t engage with ourselves like that. Even if we see ourselves in the mirror, it doesn’t elicit the same response. We depend on other people to read us, to listen to us, to support us. To see us.

I recently watched The Golden Compass and I won’t go into the details but in the story there is a world where your soul is represented by an animal companion. A literal snow leopard or mouse could be walking next to you, not as your pet, but as an extension of you. Connected but separate.

Imagine if having a conversation with yourself was as easy as turning to your furry friend next to you? If you treated yourself like another being? How differently would you treat yourself if you could see the fear, the exhaustion, the sadness, or the joy on your soul’s face? If you could hear those tones?

This isn’t about each of our religious beliefs. It’s about understanding ourselves and supporting ourselves. This is about why we Micro-dose Happiness. If we don’t hit pause, ask ourselves how we’re feeling, AND listen to the answer, we’re not treating ourselves equally.

I invite you to try this visualization this week. Think of yourself as an energy conduit. As you care for yourself and about yourself, you increase your energy levels which you pass on. They get transferred to your work, your family, your partner, and your community. But they start within you.

Pause, Micro-dose Happiness, so you can choose a High-Vibe Habit (clarity, control, confidence, curiosity, and creativity) to be your best, offer your best, and do it again and again.

What’s been calling to you? Will you pause to listen and care enough to give it to yourself?

Sending all my love and gratitude.

xx