I have been given a task. I have been trying to figure myself out, what makes me tick. In doing so, it has come to my attention that I focus primarily on negative aspects of myself and of my performance in many parts of my life. I think much of this stems from the years of condescension from my mother...but I’m a grown-up now & need to move past all of this ancient history and negativity so I can get on with being happy with myself.
My task is to write about what I love about myself – with no qualifications (but, except, I think, etc.). Just the good stuff. The idea here is to think about what I like, what I’m good at and other general areas in which I don’t suck.
So, here goes...
I love that I am an intelligent woman who can take care of herself when the need arises. When shit has hit the fan, I know that I can figure my way out of the mess. I can do this on my own. Help has always been greatly appreciated, but when it doesn’t come or isn’t available? I can figure it out myself.
I love that I can make fun of myself & my shortcomings. This lightens the blow of self-criticism. I am able to take something ridiculous, embarrassing, or just plain stupid that I have done (or not done, as the case may be) and share my idiocy with others in a way that makes them - and me - laugh.
I love that I am confident in my love and vision for my kids. My husband and I have very specific principles in which we believe and wish to impart to our children. Sometimes we (often I) have to be the “bad guys” in order to teach them these principles. I am proud that even though I may feel sad about not being able to give them what they want, I still stand up to them and hold firm to our principles.
I love that I am able to apply principles that I teach my children to myself. I hate hypocrisy. I love that I will hold myself to the same standards I hold my children.
I love that I am determined. When I was left pregnant and alone for example? I handled my shit. I got a second job & began preparing for my child.
I love that I don’t just roll over & expect someone else to fix my problems.
I love that I am self-sufficient. I understand that if I were on my own? My lifestyle wouldn’t be the same, but I would survive on my own. I would be able to provide for my son and myself on my own if I had to.
I love that I am introspective. I believe that knowing oneself is critical to truly loving oneself. I also believe my introspection has helped me improve myself, making me a better person, mother, and mate.
I love that I put on weight proportionally. Those 50 pounds of baby weight that seem to have no incentive to move along? Is pretty evenly distributed. Most people would never guess there are 50 extra pounds.
I love that I’m getting the hang of cooking – for real. I’ve cooked things like chicken, pork chops, enchiladas, & steak/onion/mushroom omelets. When school is done & I have real time to dedicate to cooking? It will be on.
I love that I can “get” things in which I negligible experience – from Hub’s Role Playing Games to a job I’ve never done before. I pick up on things quickly...which is good, being that I seem to frequently get jobs in which I have zero clue what I'm doing.
I love that I can read people well. I am very empathic.
I love that I ultimately make the practical decision.
I love that my purpose in life is to help people. I love that I care enough about humanity that I want to help make it better. (I will love this more when I have figured out *how* to make it better...)
I love that I have a vivid imagination.
I love that I have come to appreciate being unique.
I love that I have been able to come up with 600ish words on what I love about myself.
This task was actually pretty tough for me...especially to do this without qualifying anything...I’m usually pretty good at ABC except that XYZ, but I’m still really terrible at 123.
Your mission, should you choose to accept, is to make your own list of what you love about yourself. We all know where we fall short. I know in excruciatingly minute detail where and how I fall short. But how much do you think about what you love?
