Take time to heal what’s broken

I absolutely love the outdoors and even a small walk outside makes me escape the monotony of life, allowing me to get lost in the beauty of the outside world. Sometimes, the outside noise you hear when walking through the streets of a busy city seems to quieten the train of thoughts that flood your mind. When you are a person who just can’t sit idle for a long time in the confines of your home, life sure does seem difficult when you are stuck at home for a long period. Hence, being able to step out of my apartment after almost a month due to a leg injury surely felt like a huge deal!

However, it has led me to tell myself that it’s okay to let life change gears and set it on “cruise control” mode for a while. Generally, when a driver feels exhausted, they can set the car on cruise mode which controls the speed of the car and maintains a constant speed. Whatever you want to do in this life and whatever you are currently doing, gets affected if you don’t focus on your health first. Being sick takes a toll on you physically and mentally. January being the start of a new year, just like the majority of people out there, I was pumped up to begin this year with a bang. Life seemed to have other plans for me. However, I took this time to focus on healing my injured leg so that it heals faster and catching up on some tv shows I had been meaning to watch.

With one of my goals for this year being getting healthier, I haven’t been able to exercise right from the second day of this year. Life has been slower. But the only option for me was to rest and let my leg heal, so that I would be up and running soon. Jumping into the 2nd month of this year (not literally :P), all I can say is, if any of you are having a rough start like me, we still have the rest of the year to hustle. Whatever you’re going through, it’s okay to take some time off to heal from it. I am not just talking physical injuries, but mental trauma too. Our mind and body need time to process the curveballs life throws at us. Get some rest, relax for a while, get back on your feet and chase your goals with all you’ve got.

Choose yourself. Over and over.

We often talk about how we love a fictional character from a movie or a show. Have you ever wondered how easy it is to love every other thing in this world and yet, so difficult to love ourselves. We try to find meaning in the outside world, to search the light that will guide our way and give us a reason to live, something that will make us happy and feel good about ourselves. But, how often do we sit with ourselves and try to make sense of what we are.

You try to find the “good” side of all characters in movies, friendships and even relationships. And yet, you’re so cruel to yourself. To think that you’re unworthy of any good thing in this world. That you will never be as cool as the other person is. And yes, you can try to be that person, but you can’t escape who you are and what lies within you.

It takes a lot of strength to face your own demons – your insecurities, your weaknesses, your pain, your failures. And trust me, it takes an insane amount of courage to acknowledge all these things that make you vulnerable. If you can be kind to strangers and even stray animals, why not show some kindness to yourself? The first step to self love starts with accepting yourself. The good, the bad, all of it. These are the things that make you, YOU.

Accepting yourself empowers you to grow past your weaknesses. You need to tell yourself insane amount of times that “I am not just a product of my insecurities. Rather, these are just things that make me human”. What really matters is how you choose to get past it and focus on things that do bring the best out of you.

Honestly, the world is always going to have something to say about you – sometimes good, sometimes bad. Don’t let them define you or just blindly adhere to the world’s perception of you. You have the choice to live a life built on your own beliefs and choices. Just work on yourself. Believe in yourself. Choose yourself. Over and over. ✨

The solitary tree.

Amidst the endless sea in the background and the tiny green shrubs, this tree stood out in front of me because it was the only solo component I could spot in the picture. It was just swaying along with the wind, glistening in the morning sunlight, lost in a world of its own. And I couldn’t help but capture this solitary tree, out on its own, so close to the sea and yet standing distinguished from everything else around it. What a beautiful sight it was!

During this pandemic, we all have been stuck at home and coerced into pondering over our lives. There have been those who were lucky enough to be stuck with their families and friends, whereas there are those who are locked away in solitude. There’s a high level of uncertainty associated in today’s time. When will it end? What will happen? So many questions! When you start asking one of these questions, your mind just rolls into a frenzy which is difficult to come back from.

Maybe we all need to learn from this lonely tree. So much is happening around us, all this information that we consume, trying to make sense of it all. It doesn’t have to make sense all the time, you know. Sometimes, you just need to stay put through any storms of uncertainty that boggle our minds. Maybe occasionally swing around when the wind changes direction. But, with a calm mind and a stubborn heart, when the strong winds stop blowing and all of this comes to an end, you won’t be standing alone, but you surely will be standing out from the crowd, shining through the brighter days. The Universe loves a resilient heart that never quits! 💖

Already missing the long and bright summer days!

PS: This shot was taken at Wood’s Hole, Massachusetts during the summer of 2020.