YOU ARE ALLOWED TO TAKE UP SPACE, UNAPOLOGETICALLY

As we enter a new week, let us take a moment to reflect on how far you have come. Let’s take a moment to acknowledge the many different ways we have grown over this past year.

For the one who is learning to be proud of how far you have come:

Oh, how wonderfully you have grown since February of last year, over rivers, over mountains, through an ocean of your fears…learning to believe over and over again: no matter the shadows, Light is still pouring in. So breathe deep and step fully into every present moment, for every millisecond is a frame of time, a flash of light on its own. And though you cannot keep a record of every single one of them, you have been fully alive in all of them, and you have belonged in every moment, You have truly belonged in every moment. So when time is racing by, may your memory serve you well that every moment was a part of the story you will tell. Through sleepless nights and wonder-whys, you have learned to see: after everything you made it here, and you might just be alright.

For the one who has learned how to rest:

For so long, you thought you had to be making big moves to see any sort of progress. You thought all that was noteworthy took place when you were on the go.  But now, you are learning the power of a seed planted safely in the ground. You are starting to see: even though that seed is hidden away from the world - in the dark, in the quiet, there is wholeness. And now, you are finding: as you rest, you are watering that seed. You are giving that seed everything it needs to become what it needs to be.  You have learned so much from always being on the go, and now, you are learning: there are other ways to learn. There are other ways to grow. Here in the stillness, you are starting to notice what a wise thing it is to reclaim rest. For so long, it was hard to enter into this space because you felt you would run out of time. You thought if you took time away to rest you were losing out somewhere else. Now, you are finding: it is okay to miss out on what everyone else is doing in order to reclaim rest. And you will be free to rise up out of this rich, dark soil when the time is right. You are finding new ways of measuring what matters. Oh, what a beautiful sign of growth.

For the one who has learned to let go:

Over the past year, you have learned: there will be moments in life when you feel that you have to say "goodbye" before it's time. You have learned that leaving something behind doesn't always come with the closure your heart was longing for. Sometimes you have to close the door and walk away while the music still plays....even while you're left to wonder if they will just carry on without you. And at the same time, this remains true: you have also learned to embrace the open hallway before you. You’re starting to notice that there are other doors you hadn't noticed before that you are invited to enter into. It takes time to adjust to a new space and you might grieve all that has changed, and the same time, you’re finding a way to keep breathing, anyway. Slowly but surely, you’re noticing what is beautiful about where you are, even though it's so different from where you were last year. Your heart is softening into the beautiful reality that after everything, morning will still find you. With time, you’re getting used to all the newness unfolding around you. You’re making room in your heart for every part of your story that made you who you are...even if you had to say "goodbye" before you felt like it was time. You are taking deeper breaths, and you are learning to believe: you are in a new place and that you will encounter love in new ways. You will encounter peace beyond what you understand, even if it seems subtle at first. Saying "goodbye" was one of the hardest things you ever had to do, and you’re recognizing that it’s okay if it takes some getting used to. Light is still pouring through. On the other side of "goodbye," you’re finding grace and room to breathe.

More in this week's series called "Welcoming Grace Right Here", only with a subscription in the Storyteller App.

More tomorrow…
Sincerely,
Morgan Harper Nichols
@thestorytellerco
@morganharpernichols