Watching a clip from the Huberman Lab yesterday inspired me to write a letter to myself five years from now. It was so powerful! Being in a more difficult season has made it harder to feel happy or hopeful. It's essentially demolition day at my house. Things are being unraveled and taken apart. It's been very sad to watch things dissolve that I thought would last my whole life.
So the beginning of my letter was a bit solemn, but it was also helping my future self see that this arduous season has been the path to where she will be. While I can't know my future, I can dream. I can hope for what she will be and have. And from this viewpoint anything is possible. I have the power to weave the tapestry I hope will be created from the wreckage of my current life.
It's interesting how we carry different versions of ourself inside our bodies. Inside of my middle-age self lives a playful little girl, a passionate teenager, and a sage old woman. All of these people are in constant conversation with one another, influencing choices about what is happening, voicing perspectives on what has happened, and advocating for opinions about what will happen. Doing trauma work as a therapist, I see all the time that helping the younger and older versions of yourself to heal is what helps you live a more integrated, peaceful life.
Writing my letter, I was able to love my future self. I am loving her for who she is, what she has endured, and what she will do. I can forcast healing for her and her community. I can banish resentments and lingering offenses. I can picture a healthy, more compassionate, wiser woman who has walked through pain and will continue to walk, one day at a time with the Lord, toward the things He calls her to.
Comentários