{"id":7698,"date":"2017-09-08T07:26:50","date_gmt":"2017-09-08T13:26:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.handsfreemama.com\/?p=7698"},"modified":"2017-09-08T15:15:35","modified_gmt":"2017-09-08T21:15:35","slug":"getting-yourself-within-reach-of-lifes-unexpected-redo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.handsfreemama.com\/2017\/09\/08\/getting-yourself-within-reach-of-lifes-unexpected-redo\/","title":{"rendered":"Getting Yourself Within Reach of Life’s Unexpected Redo"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes my tries are outside the lines
\nWe've been conditioned to not make mistakes
\nBut I can't live that way.<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Reaching for something in the distance
\nSo close you can almost taste it
\nRelease your inhibitions
\nFeel the rain on your skin
\nNo one else can feel it for you
\nOnly you can let it in
\nLive your life with arms wide open
\nToday is where your book begins.\u201d <\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u2013Natasha Bedingfield, Unwritten<\/em><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Nine years ago, during the height of my highly distracted, maxed out life, my family took a trip to the mountains. I chose to be a detached observer, rather a present and joyful participant, so I missed it all. I even convinced my husband we should cut our trip short. We left that cozy cabin in the mountains so I could go back and pour myself into \u201cimportant\u201d things I can\u2019t even remember now.<\/p>\n

I lived with regret over that choice and the way I behaved for quite a while. Then one day, I realized punishing myself for it was not helpful or healing. Although I knew I\u2019d never get that time on the mountain back, I could do my best to live as wished I had \u2013 as a joyful and present participant rather than a detached observer.<\/p>\n

I call it Living Inside the Circle<\/em>,<\/strong>\u00a0and it is not the easiest place to reside.<\/h4>\n

You face painful truths there.<\/em>
\n You shut down your inner bully there.<\/em>
\n You accept your loved ones\u2019 weaknesses and imperfections; you accept your own.<\/em>
\n You create boundaries to protect your time, energy, and attention.<\/em>
\n You surrender control.<\/em>
\n You let go of perfect.<\/em>
\n You show up in all your glory, even when you feel less than.<\/em><\/p>\n

Living inside the circle as a present and joyful participant takes courage \u2026 effort \u2026 struggle \u2026 and vulnerability. But inside the circle is where you grow \u2013 with love \u2013 and get to experience miraculous moments that are not within reach from outside the circle.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

As you can imagine, pulling up to a cabin in the mountains last weekend with my family was quite surreal. While my family excitedly peered over the back deck into the vast mountain air, my eyes filled with tears. Nine years after that fateful trip, I was getting the unexpected redo. I would not squander this opportunity. I chose to be all there, and it felt like one of those magical moments you don\u2019t want to end \u2013 not because it was perfect by any means \u2013 but because we laughed until we cried, we worked as a team, and we shunned the world\u2019s pace and pressure so we could catch our breath.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

There was one particular moment of the three-day trip that I\u2019ll never forget. It happened when I lost my balance and fell from the raft during our white-water rafting adventure. As I began to panic and flounder in the shockingly cold water, a voice of calm came over the edge of the raft. It was my daughter Natalie\u2019s voice. With calm assurance she firmly repeated, \u201cYou\u2019re okay, Mom. I\u2019m with you. I won\u2019t let you go.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was her words and her tone that enabled me to think rationally and listen clearly so I could be rescued.<\/p>\n

My daughter never looked to the raft guide or to her father before she spoke to me. She took matters into her own hands and kept me with her so I didn\u2019t drift too far away.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

My daughter knew how to be fully present in the moment that mattered.<\/p>\n

She knew how to show up when it would have been easier to become detached.<\/p>\n

She knew how to live in the circle \u2013 a place where missteps can be redeemed with presence, effort, compassion, and love.<\/h4>\n

I\u2019d like to believe she might have learned a little of that from me.<\/p>\n

And if so, it would have been tragic if I\u2019d let regret convince me to keep punishing myself for past mistakes,<\/p>\n

if I\u2019d let failure convince me I wasn\u2019t capable of becoming a present and joyful participant,<\/p>\n

if I\u2019d let perfection convince me it was a necessary requirement of a beautiful life.<\/p>\n

Thank goodness, it\u2019s not.<\/p>\n

In fact, it\u2019s the growth from the falling and the rising that put us in place to grasp life\u2019s miracle moments \u2013 the ones we can't reach as an observer from outside the circle.<\/h4>\n

Dear ones, if today finds you stalled by a past mistake or stuck in a current failing, please listen:<\/p>\n

Don't\u2019 let pain convince you you\u2019re not strong enough to take it.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t let perfection say you can\u2019t be redeemed.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t let regret steal your joy.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t let distraction pull you away from what matters.<\/p>\n

Look pain, fear, discomfort, and shame right in the eye and step into the circle JUST AS YOU ARE<\/strong>.<\/h3>\n

You might be surprised to find a familiar hand there, inviting you to accept a redo you never thought possible.<\/p>\n

With open hands, open eyes, and an open heart, I hope you take it.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

************************************************************<\/p>\n

Dear ones, the principles I touched on today (facing painful truths, silencing your inner bully, accepting weaknesses and imperfections, creating boundaries, surrendering control, and showing up in all your glory) are the topics of the first ever online course I will be offering in coming months. It has been a long-time dream of mine to use my skills as an educator and encourager to help people in an engaging and personal way that my books <\/a>cannot. More information coming soon on this exciting opportunity. In the meantime, please check my speaking schedule below. A registration link has been added for the FREE event in Ohio, as well as a new date added for California:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n