Spring Stepping Stones: Being Myself

Photography by Joshua Shelton

How do you fully embrace yourself?

This society is constantly manipulating us into believing we are not worthy.

Media has painted a vivid picture of what beautiful is and means.

Our actions toward one another speaks volumes to this belief of beauty and self-worth.

Young girls and boys are learning to hate themselves before reaching their adolescent years and it breaks my heart.

So, how do you fully and wholeheartedly show up for yourself and embrace all that you are?

That is what the journey to self-love is based upon--finding the strength to show up for yourself and using your power to embrace yourself when society tells you not to.

-Patience Davis




It is not easy nor is it fulfilling in the beginning. Which I learned this spring. So I want to discuss one of my many "spring stepping stones" with you because it may help you or someone else on their self-love journey. If you are new to my journey, stop reading now and take a look at all of my self notes. You will understand me better by doing so.

So now let's chat.

I feel like everyone goes through a time in their lives when they are completely lost. For me this was when I turned 20 years old. I felt like it was and still is a weird time in my life. I am trying to figure myself out as well as my career goals and my relationship goals. A lot goes through my mind every single day but the most drilling thought is the one of peace and love.

By this I mean that the one thing I truly desire in life like most of us is peace and love. Peace within myself and love from others. I thought this self-love journey would help me get to that space in my life but it hasn't. This spring I finally realized--after beating myself up about not practicing what I preach--that I wasn't making progress because I was not being myself fully. I was not embracing myself fully as one should every day. I was hiding my identity, I was trying to become someone else. Someone who was more likable. Someone who was more relatable and "normal".

I didn't see or understand any of this before until I reconnected with an old friend this past spring. He was a dear friend, one that I always knew would be around when I needed him. Except the connection wasn't there anymore. I no longer needed him the way I once did. I no longer held on to the past the way I once did. And by not holding on to the past, I recreated my future and my purpose.

The recreation of this led me to open my eyes to me, to my capabilities and to my true self. Throughout my self-love journey I often looked at my past and tried to understand why things happened the way they did and why I did the things I did. But after getting a glance into my past I realized that I have changed and I wasn't embracing my changed self--my grown up and matured self.

But how can you embrace yourself if you don't even know who you are?

I hadn't yet connected with my changed self because I was too busy trying to figure out my past self. This new outlook and idea of connection with your current Self has helped me get closer to fully loving me and fully showing up for myself every damn day. And now I feel closer to Patience than I ever have before. I am in-tune with me, I can name my thoughts and emotions without judgement. I can look at myself in the mirror and smile and laugh just because. To me these are all signs that I am at peace with myself and most importantly showing myself the proper love I so deserve.

Cheers to that.