Why Don’t You Leave Well Enough Alone?

Why do you keep pushing yourself?
Why don’t you leave Well Enough alone?
Facebook Memories- run-Disney♡
This was my inspiration to begin running- to wear a tutu and a tiara in a Disney Princess race at my favorite place on earth… (besides the woods). I gained so much more than a couple beautiful medals, new friendships and memories that fill my heart.
Running became a physical outlet and a funnel for my frantic unresolved energy. As I pushed through uncomfortable physical challenges, I built strength and power to move through emotional barriers. This race and running became the support I needed and used seven years ago when life shifted into a difficult, confusing season.
Any and every insecurity, unhealed emotion, ignored desires, disregarded sadness, pressed down anger… bubbled up at once. It was a cyclone of shit spewed into the air and it fell onto an unsteady foundation like a deck of cards tossed up and recklessly scattered about.
Seven years of reading books, seeking information, speaking with coaches and counselors, meditating, moving, and praying, to peal back layers of emotions to uncover patterns of behavior to unlock the door that I was hiding behind.
Seven years later I am standing in a similar space but with so much more knowledge and a full tool bag. Might this be a mid-life crisis or maybe the dark night of the soul? I’m not sure. But I know these valleys are meant for growth and to catapult us to the next level, higher ground.
Going inward is not fun, it’s not easy. Then why do it?
A close friend once asked me in complete agitation, “Why do you keep tormenting yourself?”
The answer is, to get to the other side. I don’t want to stay small, hiding and fearful of life. I want to meet each day with confidence, courage, and curiosity. I want to find the authentic me that’s beneath all the layers that I’ve built for protection, because now they are just holding me back.
Finding balance through these seasons is difficult, to identify practices that keep you focused on healing and moving through. To understand how to navigate deep waters without drowning or speeding right by. It’s learning grace, patience, and space for yourself. It’s about understanding how your mind and body operate in all situations, listening- hearing, and feeling.
I don’t have it all figured out, but I’m moving in the right direction.
If you find yourself in a similar space, I’m rooting for you! And if you need support, I’m here for that too♡
Run your own race… at your own pace.
Find something that challenges you to help build your inner power.
Sending you so much love♡
Maureen xo

It Takes Courage to Grow Up and Become Who You Really Are~

Wow! 2017!? It really is true what they say about time, it does move faster the older you get.

As I rang in the 2017 New Year with my family, I stood silently in the background recording the celebration as they banged pots and pans together, blew horns, and yelled, “HAPPY NEW YEAR!” into the crisp cold winter air. My silent thoughts reflected on how different this New Year celebration was compared to the last few before it. I suspected the following one would be different yet as I continue to redefine my new life. As the New Year was ushered in by the sounds of celebration I was deep in my thoughts trusting that I had learned much, grown wiser, and had accomplished something commendable.

2016 was a great year for growth, enlightenment, and acceptance. It provided many circumstances that created significant changes, changes that were important to take place in order to move forward in life, love, and the choices I will make in the future.

It seemed like my life was set on cruise control, I didn’t worry about the speed I was traveling nor the destination I was set to arrive at, then….. BAM! A collision caused me to spin out of control that had me praying, “Jesus take the wheel!”, but out of my wreckage came something more refined, more defined, and more beautiful- Me. Life is funny that way; we can always count on it to provide us with the experiences we need to bring us to the places we must go in order to become who and what we were meant to be, in this alone is much beauty.

Even though I was in agreeance with the divorce- it was way more difficult to move forward than I anticipated. I was forced into places of discomfort from doors that swung open, ones that I thought were locked for good. It was an intense training course about reality and how to graciously handle it, though I didn’t graciously do any of it in the beginning. I am happy to report that I closed this past year out with a passing grade and have moved onto my next course, ‘Creating your New Life’. The slate is blank which leaves endless possibilities.

A viewpoint makes all the difference in how we proceed to our next destination; the choice to view the past year’s events as a gift or a hindrance. To view them as stepping stones that lead to higher grounds or as pits that entrap and hold us captive.

I am counting on 2017 to be another great year, one that will provide all I need to continue to become all I was meant to be as I Run 2 My Life in this crazy beautiful world.

“It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” E.E. Cummings

How was 2016 for you? Are you able to take its events and see them as positive reinforcement in your life? I would love to hear your thoughts!