“I celebrate myself, and sing myself.” -Walt Whitman

I have been reflecting on half a year of positivity questing this week. Trying to organize what I have learned in this time and trying to marshal it to step up when, even now I can forget how to be positive. Happily because I talk about it so much, when I can’t quite get there, I have many reliable reflectors in my family to remind me where to look. 

One thing that I realized while speaking with my eldest daughter was how being able to articulate and really appreciate yourself with both your flaws and strengths really enhances your experience. One thing that I have practiced more in the last six months than in the last six years is the remarkable power of being my own friend. Believing in myself and what I want attracts that same feeling in the world. Think how much harder you have to work at loving someone who doesn’t love themselves.

There are many ways to make a loving relationship with yourself I have learned over the last six months. One of the most obvious, yet most overlooked is thinking about how we talk to ourselves and about ourselves. By adding kindness to our internal dialogue we open the space for old, dismembered parts of ourselves to reconnect. Lately I have been having long talks with the adolescent part of myself and listening for what she wants to do. It has been a revelation in celebrating myself.

Trusting yourself enough to make goals and having the courage to hold onto your aspirations is a great positivity practice for which I am a walking testimonial. Sometimes I feel the need to pinch myself to make sure that I am not dreaming how fortunate my circumstances are. They say that luck is where opportunity meets preparation. I feel lucky and I know it is not random.

All weekend, celebrate yourself and listen for a dream.