a fabulous guest post by Myriam Joseph

By the way, Myriam runs the ever inspiring JOY (spread the word) – a business dedicated to spreading joy in the way of offering truly uplifting apparel for children. I can’t wait for our baby boy to grow into these shirts!Below is her guest post…please enjoy it! Thank you, Myriam!!(myriam!)Take a look at yourself. Last week while reading Kelly-Mama-Rae’s blog, I found myself admiring the way in which she holds her life so precious. I am always so charmed by the pieces of herself that she chooses to share with the world and I began to wonder what effect highlighting select parts of her life has on her soul. I believe that the way in which she takes us into her world is an expression of the love she has for herself. As I pondered the thought, I recognize that what I really appreciate about the generous glimpse is that this practice requires that she stand witness to her life in a way that enhances her relationship with herself. It’s not so much the routine of life that is honored in this practice it’s the sharing of yourself with yourself. It’s about really engaging in the enjoyment of something that happened to you and then deeming it important enough to share with a wide audience. You filter through the events in your day/life and decide which to share and which would bring relief/joy to write . The act of selecting what you’ll write about or share, triggered by your inner self, then renders that particular experience important. No matter the size of the couch, the color of the paint, the left or right turn, some piece of that particular activity has been filed into your memory under “important/must share” and the choice of sharing and reliving or describing nurtures your spirit. So I started thinking, since I don’t have a blog or a journal to read myself, it must mean that things that happen in my life aren’t important to me, or better yet are they not as important as the things that happen to Kelly Rae? I mean really of course if I had that car/house /talent/friendship it would be worthy of sharing right??!! Um, hello, can see where this is going? Nothing good is going to come out of this if I keep heading down this road. The comparison thing always ends in disaster, always. Perhaps a better approach would be, to take a look at how I honor the ordinary daily events that happen in my life and can I see them as extraordinary even if I share with an audience of just one? What I enjoy so much when reading blogs are the details people choose to share about their lives that are made up of the same details that make up my life, it’s just that I find their lives so much fancier. I do have many of the same blessings in my life, yet I’m just coming around to the idea that it’s mine for the taking, and it’s mine for the making. I do have that car/house/ talent/friendship just different from her. I look closely and it’s clear I don’t have a practice that reflects back to me this enchanted life I am creating. Don’t worry this won’t turn into a conversation about the many ways to have gratitude. It will however be a conversation about encouraging each of us to find our own way to stand witness to our lives. My hope is that I too can create a place for myself to be reminded that the details of my life are extraordinary and fancy and fun and big and important. It is not enough to actually do the thing, it’s more important that I sit with myself and review the thing I have created with myself to enhance my relationships with myself. Each of us is our own greatest measure of a life well lived and a life well loved. Thank you Kelly-Mama-Rae for the inspiration to inspire ourselves.