I spent last weekend in Kingsport, Tennessee leading the sixth weekend of our 200-hour yoga teacher training program at VIDA Hot Yoga. I think I have shared with you guys in a previous post that this is my first all-female training group. While I’m always amazed by how each teacher training group has its own personality and dynamics, this all-female group has been an experience like no other!
IT’S BEEN DEEP! These ladies came willing to dive in on weekend one and it’s been a wild ride. It’s inspiring to see how much they trust each other and how vulnerable they are willing to be with the group. They have challenged me as a leader, and I have learned a tremendous amount from them.
This past weekend we spent time talking about what self-love really means and what self-care really looks like. The discussion ran the gamut from hot baths to practicing yoga to getting enough sleep to setting boundaries to trusting intuition and everything in between. Our conversation was layered, honest and moving. These women have moved me to tears on more than one occasion.
On Sunday one of my TTs shared something powerful that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about. It was something she wrote in her yoga journal while she was on a solo vacation. She’s a mom of four and going through some challenging life circumstances and transitions. She booked a 7-day cruise and took herself on a solo trip for the first time in a long time (maybe ever). I asked for permission to share what she wrote because it’s so powerful. Her response was to “share away” and I am honored to spread her words here with you tonight.
I am so freaking proud of myself this week because I know what it’s taken to lift myself up out of the fog and trust my intuition.
That is beauty.
I trust my intuition because I know the love of the intention behind the choices I make.
That is inner peace.
And no explanation will ever be enough for those who aren’t supportive, but you don’t have to be understood when you understand your own soul.
That is self-love.
That is beauty. That is inner peace. That is self-love. These words are beautiful and these ideas are centered around getting GOOD with ourselves. Love and happiness are an inside job. No thing, circumstance or person is going to do it for us.
One of the greatest gifts of the last few years of my life has been living inner peace and self-love. I knew it from an idealistic perspective before, and I talked a good game about it, but I was forced to really embody it. Most everything I clung to as true and identifying was stripped away. I had to evolve or sink. I had to lift myself out of the fog.
On the other side, I feel that I have become a whole and complete person on my own. I have come to value, appreciate and honor my intuition and the wisdom that it offers. That is something that I was quick to cast off to the side or explain away in the past. My teacher trainee’s words that “I trust my intuition because I know the love of the intuition behind the choices I make” couldn’t be more perfect. This kind of love has made me a happier person, and also a better mother to Finn.
I could keep writing for a long time, but speaking of motherhood…
I am blessed beyond measure.
This little being has been the catalyst to finding the abundant beauty that life offers every single day when you look inside. To feeling peace deep within of my being. To honoring my intuition and deeply valuing and loving myself. I am so lucky to be his mama, and my heart has never been so full.
Being a mom has been incredible. Being a yoga teacher has been a dream job. Writing this blog has brought me more connection and abundance than I ever dreamed possible. But behind all of that I am me and I have to love me to feel whole and complete, and to show up as the mom, teacher and writer that I want to be.
I know this post was a lot. It’s been a long time since I’ve written one like this but I hope it landed or resonated with at least some of you.
What you’re looking for to complete you, it’s not outside of you. It’s within you.
I love you all very much.
Jen
What beautiful words And messages to remember every day!
love. thank you. love you back!
Thank you for sharing. I’m a new mom and your blog is a bright spot.
I am a longtime reader and I can’t tell you how impressed I am at the way you’ve handled what life threw at you. I’ve been with you since the very early days and I love this blog so much. It meant so much to me that you shared so many personal details. I am hoping to be able to follow you for many more years
Love this – thank you for sharing!
Jen,
I love your blog so so much. Reading your posts are truly a bright spot in my day. You are so incredibly inspiring. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
What a lovely and thoughtful post. I just finished a yoga class tonight and was thinking at the end that I wish I could get to a point where I felt like I was “enough.” Hearing about your journey and the yogi in your teacher training inspires me to work on that.
Thank YOU for being you! You are amazing. I can’t even recall how I found your blog years ago and it’s been incredible, impressive and inspiring to watch your journey through life. This is a reminder that life is messy and never what we imagine it to be, but we all make it through and it’s truly because of the light within ourselves and the connection we find in people…even when that is because of a blog/IG account <3
Love this post so much! Thank you for sharing these words and inspiring others. Especially this time of year – so important to remember where our happiness and strength really lies… within us. Hope you and Finn and the rest of your family have a wonderful Christmas! I look forward to seeing your posts.
Thank you for this <3
Beautiful post! Thank you for sharing.
I love this. Not a mom, but I SO believe in the power of solo vacations. Maybe it’s because I am a borderline introvert but there is something about going off, being by myself, reflecting that I find SO nourishing.
Those words your TT wrote…. wow, just wow!! I have read her quote over and over and love it, it’s so powerful and really hits home. Thank you for sharing that with us <3
Thank you so much for sharing that, Jen! It touches me deeply and it gives me hope I might be on the right path, despite everything feeling so heavy right now. I have been reading for a long time – thank you for putting work into this little gold nugget of a blog. All the best & greetings from Germany. Anna
love this post! I feel like I have been on a similar path of self discovery since my son was born 15 months ago. I need posts like this as I weigh the options of staying in a marriage that is good enough to survive but not fulfilling for my soul.
I absolutely loved this post. AND needed it today.
This was exactly what I needed to read tonight. The quote about intuition really resonated with me. I love when you write these posts. Thank you for sharing ?
This is so beautiful! Thank you for sharing all that you do.
Wow, Jen. Please hold my coffee while I grab a tissue. Haha! This resonated so, so much. I went through a really hard break-up last Fall — we were together for three years and I thought that I would marry him. But through this experience, I have come to truly understand the importance of self-love, inner peace, and contentment. You are so right that happiness is not dependent upon another person… we are the author of our own happiness & contentment. Thank you for this post. <3
Such a great post! Thank you so much for sharing!!
-Kate
https://daysofkate.com/
Absolutely beautiful and moving. Thanks for sharing!
I have followed you for years and yours is the only blog I still follow – because of posts like this. I so admire how you remain positive and truly illustrate what it is to do the right thing and live a full and authentic life. I have been divorced for a year and I struggle daily with sadness and anger. I’m still learning how to get GOOD with myself. I tend to turn on myself when life is difficult which is the opposite of self love. Then I make decisions I’m not proud of. Thank you for posts like this. They always connect me back to my own heart. Xoxo
Love love these words….these really resonate with me and I appreciate you and your trainee sharing this with us! Such important words to remember 🙂