Daily Inspo: Self Empowerment

As I was re-reading chapter four of "You Are Your Choices" by Alexandra Stoddard, I will admit that I felt a little bit of discomfort at first.

The chapter is called "Stand on Your Own Two Feet" and since I've been through some pretty extreme health crises that have required a great deal of support from others, it felt a bit ableist to me.

As I read a little further into the chapter, however, I realized that Alexandra is really talking more about standing in your own mind. She is talking about the importance of challenging the ideas and beliefs that were handed to us and learning to make up our own minds about things.

And that, I can get behind.

My favorite part of this chapter states:

"You have to take a stand within yourself. "

You have to take a stand within yourself. - Alexandra Stoddard

"Being tough minded, thinking through things for yourself, is the only way to be able to stand in the center of your essence."

I love that so much.

I have had to stand in my own mind about so many things throughout life and I have come to see that this is the only way forward for me. So many people have so many different opinions, but it's my own opinion about my life that matters most.

This doesn't mean that I'm not willing to change my mind about things when new information is presented (I consider open-mindedness to be one of my core values), but it does mean that I stand firm in my right to be tough minded about the choices I make that are best for me and my personal wellbeing.

Because truly, I am the one that is the caretaker of my own life, so I should be the one to decide how to live it.

With love,

from Julia

-------------------------------

A note about inspirational quotes: I've noticed that inspirational quotes don't always apply to me when I'm in survival mode or other states of being, like in times of rest or when things are out of my control. This is why I always check in with myself before taking in the messages. If a quote doesn't feel applicable to me in the moment, I simply ignore it and remind myself that not everything applies to me all the time.

A note about my social values: I recognize that not every person has access to the resources needed to be able to cultivate a life of peace, beauty, and joy, which is why I will always support systems and people who are doing the work to move toward a world that supports the basic needs and rights of all people. I believe that "the true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members." - Gandhi