Blog: On Being a Human
I’ve been thinking a lot about being a human lately.
I know it sounds like a simple statement, but it holds profound meaning to me. I recently realized that I have held a lot of stories about what exactly it means to be a human…ones that often are limiting, shaming, critical. Ones that demand perfection, denying your needs, and asks you to live behind a mask. Do any of those sound familiar?
Yeah, same…I imagine I’m not so alone, and yet it can feel so lonely realizing old stories and trying to write new stories about embracing our humanness. So, here is a small space on a very small corner of the internet where I want to undo aloneness and lean into the messiness, complexity, and absolute beauty of reclaiming our humanity.
I’ve recently been reading Already Enough by Lisa Olivera and it is packed with wisdom, freedom, and compassion that can hold all of our humanity. I’ve had a pretty solid ebb and flow of good days and hard days in this season of life, giving me so much * lovely* practice in writing new stories about what it means to be a person in this complex life. It’s hard though, and I certainly don't or can’t do that on a lot of those days. But when I do, something magical happens. Each time I extend gentleness, honesty, and compassion to myself, I am reconstructing my own new definition of being a human. Right now, being a human to me means:
Embracing the messiness, complexity, confusion, and pain that is inherent in our world and selves.
Being honest with myself and others, asking hard questions, committing to hard work, even when it doesn’t feel good.
Trying to be present with what is. Extending acceptance to myself and others while also advocating for healing and change when it is needed.
Leaning into not having all the answers and letting that be okay.
I hope that list is always growing to encompass the complexity and nuance of what it means to exist in this world. I am committed to always evolving and creating a more expansive and inclusive definition of what it means for all of us to be human, together.
You are good, You are lovable. You don’t have to prove your worth.
Here are a few questions from Already Enough by Lisa Olivera that have helped me embrace the messiness of being a human:
“What makes it challenging for you to embrace the messiness of being a human?
What gets in the way of allowing messiness to be okay, even good?
Whose judgement are you afraid of in relation to accepting the messiness?
Who do you admire as someone who embraces the messiness fully?
What would it look like for you to honor the mess a little bit more?
What might change if messiness became something to honor instead of something to fix?”
I’d love to hear your thoughts on being a human! If you want to process through this together, I’d love to connect.
Your messiness is okay, and actually, it is good.
xo,
Cathryn
