Peace.

There is a lot of unrest happening right now. Locally and globally. To call it unsettling, is a vast understatement.

And then there’s the inner world of unrealistic and perfectionistic standards, expectations, and comparisons.

Peace is just not something that comes easy.

Many of us have lost aspects of ourselves chasing external pursuits. 

And a majority of us… mistake our inner critic for our true voice.

For most of my life, my mind had much more than one critic. I had an entire board room. 

Lined up, notes in hand, ready to go… 

“Steve do you want to begin, or should I go first?”

Typical to most board rooms, mine was a group of middle-aged white men, with one token woman quietly sitting off-center.

It’s quite wild how often we live inside our own minds isn’t it?

I can’t count the amount of trouble-shooting or crucial conversations I’ve had… all while washing my hair in the privacy of my shower.

Our inner narratives unfold over and over again.Most of which aren’t really happening. Most of which aren’t true.

Living into peace… wasn’t a quick and easy journey for me.

And as much as I would love to tell you I have “arrived”… being at peace is much like most things in life. It’s a daily practice.

One that isn’t perfect.

Trusting myself-  loving myself enough to trust myself- was the key to unlocking all of it.

The limits that we place on ourselves. The ways in which we play small. The “should have’s” and “have to’s”. The negative self talk.

They all come from implicit and explicit conditioning. From the experiences we had in our home… to the experiences we had in school.

From the playground to the office. From the movies we watched, to the magazines we read.

All of these messages found their way in and covered up these truths along the way:

You were born whole, bold, and sweetly wild. 

You came into this world inherently worthy 

of love, belonging, and celebration. 

The way to peace is through love. And the way to love starts with the self.

We embrace our authenticity. We offer ourselves lovingkindness and compassion.

We release the need for external validation.

We create a nurturing and nourishing environment within.  

We become our own compass, our own roadmap, our own guide. 

This is how we return to peace again and again.

All through self-love.

xo