Give yourself permission to thrive

When I was in school, I used to read a lot of ‘Chicken Soup for the Soul. My young mind grasped the empathy in those pages like any influential mind would. One day I read a story about a woman who had bought a beautiful red dress to wear it on a special occasion. Months passed to years and she kept the dress safe for a special occasion until she completely forgot about it. One day while cleaning her wardrobe she saw that dress has remained untouched waiting for the special occasion which never came in all the years. The woman learnt that people cannot keep on waiting to do something they like and miss out on all the opportunities that are there to be made special.
Very recently, I had read a quote that said,
– In many shamanic societies, when people came to a medicine man feeling dispirited the medicine man would ask – ‘Since when did you stop singing? Since when did your stop dancing?
How long has it been since you stopped believing in stories? ‘
It is so important to immerse in doing what we love for our well-being. Yet, there are numerous women and little girls all over the world who are asked to do just the opposite.
Starting from giving up playing volleyball just because a girl has reached adolescence, to a woman giving up her job, hobby or passion because she has a family to raise and no one to help with, every single day the spark of a woman is dimmed. Just like the red dress whose lustre faded over the years waiting for a special occasion.
There is no special occasion. Every day is a special occasion, every moment is special. Don’t dim the brightness of your existence waiting for something or someone to announce it so.
It takes an enormous amount of courage and discipline to incorporate what you want in life. If you want to be yoga instructor and train, if you want to publish a book, if you want to be the next Miss India, or be a pilot, whatever fancies your mind you need to find that time amidst your daily schedule and consistently stick to it. Your dreams need dedication and a fierce resolve that you won’t let it just fade. Your effort in the end would be worth it.
Your dreams need not be so grand either. Maybe you want to just watch the rain fall and sip your tea in your favourite mug as you drink watching the lazy droplets fall on earth. Don’t keep it off for another day. When you feel like doing something, do it. Don’t let thoughts like ‘I have pending chores, the office files need to be sent, what would people think, and other such doubtful thoughts hold you back from expressing your soul’s desire.
Give yourself the permission to thrive.

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