Day 2: Growth

Growth

When I was little I wanted nothing more than to be famous and fabulous. I sang everywhere I went and I knew that one day I would be on someone's magazine, I'd be a household name, and money would not ever be an issue. As I got older I started to realize that fame is not always what it's cracked up to be, I only wanted to be on magazines so that someone would idealize me and that I have 99 problems and money will always be one (at least for the time being)! I wanted the things that I felt I lacked and I thought growing up to be a superstar would fix them.


Back in the day, I was dealing with a lot of internal turmoil. My mind was corrupted by women on tv and the superstars of my upbringing. I looked nothing like them. I was not fabulous like them, my teeth were not straight like them, the list goes on. I was constantly comparing what I didn't have, trying to find understanding in what I had to offer. I was not even safe from comparing myself to my aunts and mother. They were (and still are) so beautiful, thin (or should I say thick in all the right places?) and fabulous while I felt I was fat, unattractive and lacked any kind of fashion sense. I had this need to look like anyone but myself.

Well, those days are so far behind me. We all have our issues and our insecurities that we deal with from a day to day basis and I, for one, am no exception! However, I am much more grounded in who I am and loads more confident. I like to think of myself as a beautifully and wonderfully created being. Who would have thought that the little girl that was so insecure and so desperate to be anyone but herself would turn into the woman that I am today? I have so much love invested in myself that I couldn't afford to be anyone else. Is that not an exemplary image of growth?

One of the biggest things I've learned, especially in the past year, is that growth is incredibly important. Investing time in ourselves and nurturing those negative aspects of our lives is key to growth. I'm no expert by any means, but I am sure that I have a lot of experience in changing the mindset of negativity to a mindset of encouragement and positivity. It's not always easy to address the real underlying issues that exist in our hearts but it is imperative if there is any hope for growth and progression. I am a walking testimony of that.

I think what sparked my growth was my hate for hating myself. Not many people knew what was going on with me on the inside so I did not have many people to turn to. It was a combination of God and myself working toward better thoughts and better appreciation for who I am. Every day I had to take note of the great things about myself and focus less on what I was not. Everyday you learn more and more about yourself and when you seek out the good, you begin to find it.


I'm so excited to see what happens in the coming months and even the coming years. I hope to continue to grow and flourish in everything I do. I encourage you to look forward to your growth and invest in it as well. You'll only know what you need to work on until you take the time out to figure it out! In what areas in your life do you hope to grow?