be your own best friend

Why is it that we can be so much kinder to others than we are to ourselves?

If your friend arrived at your door with her heart broken you would invite her in, give her a comfy place to sit, and make her a glass of tea.  You would give her space to tell her story.  You would be a shoulder to lean on.  You would sit besides her and let her know that you are there.  You wouldn't rush her to get back up.  You would give her a place to rest and be.

Yet when you arrive at your own door with your heart in your hands you knock yourself over.  With a large list of expectations you push yourself to get back up sooner than you are ready.  You are demanding on yourself never giving yourself time to heal and rest.  Yet this is exactly what your mind and body need.  

You need to treat yourself like you would your best friend.  Be kind, tender, loving.  Allow yourself space to feel all the feels.  Do not try to rush through to the next emotion, just be where you are, and be ok with that.  Pour yourself a cup of tea.  Crawl into bed.  Do whatever it is that makes you happy.  Feed our soul with love.  

You deserve to shower yourself with kindness. Do you not hold back.  Feel the love and be the kind of friend you want to have.  

share kindness

Share kindness, always
Not only with those around you
But with yourself
It is easier to be kind to others
But you deserve love
You deserve to not be so hard on yourself
Grant yourself space to breathe
To be
To show up without judgement or criticism
I know
It's not easy
But it is what your soul needs
Do not feel foolish when you shower yourself with love
Open up the water and let it all pour out
Take time to look at yourself in the mirror
And love the person looking back at you
Remember how far you have traveled
Recognize how hard you try
You my dear are so much stronger than you know
Feel your strength
Breath in your beauty
Know that you are following your own path
Fill your soul with kindness
Infuse it in your heart
Remember, you are deeply loved
Be kind to yourself

{Inspired by the second prompt for the Love Notes Postcard Project}

hello beautiful!

Hello Beautiful,

There is so much I want you to know.  Like how proud I am of you and how deeply I adore your wide open heart.  You shine a light in this world like no other and I am grateful to be within it's rays.  

I honor the journey you have traveled.  How grateful I am to have had the opportunity to watch you grow.  I wish you could see yourself through my eyes.  

I see your strength.
I see how hard you try.
I see the way you show up.

You are determined.  You chase after your dreams with wild abandon even when you do not know where you will end up.  You lean deeply in and follow your heart.  You take risks and jump into the great unknown. You are braver than you ever give yourself credit for.  

Stop for a moment and look around.  Did you ever think you would end up here?  So deeply loved.  In a kind and caring relationship.  Unearthing your passions.  Adored by your nieces and nephews and spending so much divine time with family.  You have really come so far.  

I know, I know.  There is so many more roads you are looking to travel.  I understand that and appreciate your hunger.  But do not allow that hunger to blind you from all that you have accomplished and all that you have made it through.  

Your patient and tender heart encourages others to open up their own hearts.  Your calm and gentle soul slows people down and reminds them to savor the moment.  Do not ever stop being who you are.  Embrace your quietness.  You connect with others through your thoughtful words.  Know that you never have to pretend to be somebody else.  

I love you.  I cherish your curiosity and passion for adventure.  Keep running.  Keep riding.  Keep moving your body and navigating your own path forward.  You know as much as I do that you were never meant for the conventional path.  It just isn't in you, and that is ok.  What is wonderful is that others see that in you.  They know that you shine your brightest when you step boldly into yourself.  Keep stepping into yourself, always.  

And remember you are loved.  So deeply loved.  

xoxo Love,
Your Biggest Fan!

{Inspired by the Love Notes Postcard Project first writing prompt.  I encourage you to write a love letter to yourself.  Begin with the words .. "hello beautiful" and love on yourself deeply!}

charting the unknown waters

Lately I have been swimming in this sea of uncharted waters.  There are moments when I feel as if I am drowning.  It is like I have forgotten how to swim and need to re-learn each of the strokes.  The shore feels incredibly far away and I don't know if I will ever reach it.

The steady crash of the waves has me feeling disoriented as the tide pulls me further out to sea.  I am trying to find the strength within me to stay afloat but I am defeated.  This beautiful ocean is an incredible life force.  

All I can do is surrender.  

I feel as if I am waiting for my real life to begin.  The life I dream of.  The one that I scribble about between the pages of my journal.  The life that my heart deeply desires.  I crave this life and deep in my soul know it is the one I am meant to be living.  

Yet here I am in the middle of the ocean, losing site of the horizon.  Fearful of swimming to shore because it is a big and bold move forward.  In order to swim I need to believe in myself.  I need to know that I am deserving of my dreams.  That my voice is meant to be heard.  That there is room enough in this world for what I want to offer.  

I can see it.  I can feel it.  I know that it is the right direction for me.  I just need to be brave enough to leap.  I need invest in myself fully.  Ditch the "what if it doesn't work out" thoughts and simply see what is possible.  

I must to take the chance.  

Now more than ever I need to show up for myself.  I do not know how many days I have left on this earth.  Life can be taken in the blink of any eye.  One day we are going about our daily business and the next day we could be gone.  And we never know when that day will be.  If I continue to delay going after my dreams I may run out of time.  

I don't want to run out of time.  I must begin.  

I know I have said it before time and time again, but this moment feels different.  This ocean I am swimming in is terrifying and it is forcing me to be brave.  I will re-learn how to swim. I will find my way to a new shore and I won't give up even if it takes awhile to get there.  Because what I dream of is my destiny and only I can create it.  

And so I begin swimming

love notes is back with special guest Mindy Tsonas

Send and receive a little love in the mail! For details: jenniferbelthoff.com

The Love Notes Postcard Project is back and I am thrilled to announce that we have a very special guest!  Mindy Tsonas with Embody Love Movement will be providing the weekly writing prompts.  I received a peak and they are so good.  I can't wait to share them with you!  We begin July 9th, sign up today!

Embody Love Movement is a global non-profit organization founded by Dr. Melody Moore, created to empower girls and women to celebrate their unique inner beauty and push back against harmful media standards, commit to kindness and contribute to meaningful change in the world!  ELM offers in-person workshops, events, and online experiences and education, dedicated to helping each of us discover our real beauty within.  

I feel that this is the perfect collaboration because Love Notes is all about spreading kindness and lifting up each others spirits.  We do this through handwritten notes in the mail.  You never know the true effect that your words will have on the recipient but I can guarantee they most definitely make them smile.    

Mindy Tsonas is the creator of Studiofemme, an Embodied Artist, and certified Embody Love Facilitator.  She helps to guide women into the extraordinary Wonderland of themselves.  Through juicy creative pursuits and honest explorations, her calling is to inspire others to shake loose and get naked in empowered, exquisite truth, to name and claim all aspects of who they are, and un-shame every desire.  She is also an avid Love Notes participant.  

What is Love Notes?

Love Notes is a free three week project where individuals are paired up with one another to exchange hand written postcards.  Don't worry if you do not have postcards, note cards are fine.  Some people even create their own.  There are no hard and fast rules as long as it is a little something you can send through the mail.   

Worried about what you are going to write?  I got you covered!  Each Sunday a writing prompt will go out to provide you with a jumping off point for what to write on your postcard.  As I said above Mindy's prompts are divine and I just know you are going to love them!  

This is the 20th installment of this project and I could not be more excited to begin.  Friendships have formed and mail continues to be exchanged long after each round is finished due to the extraordinary individuals who participate in the project.  

Looking to learn more?  Click here or pop on over to the Facebook Group.  Have a question?  Drop me a note at jennifer@jenniferbelthoff.com.  

This round is going to be so good!  

showing up for yourself

Next week I kept saying to myself over and over again.  Next week I will begin.  Next week I will get back into the groove.  Yet that time came and went and I continued down the very same path I was traveling.  The one I no longer wanted to be on.  

Next week I said again, next week.  

And here we are in that moment of time and I am pushing myself to step forward.  To choose movement, gratitude, journaling, meditation, nourishing my soul, and showing up with love. Because there is no reason to wait a second longer.  It is time to be in the present moment, today.  

I know that I all my grand plans won't work out the way I dream they will.  There will be slip ups and moments where I veer off course.  But even if some things slip through the cracks that does not mean that all is lost.  I must simply pick up from where I am and keep stepping forward.  

Life is a beautiful ebb and flow.  

There is no such thing as perfection.  Only an opportunity to be right where I am.  And so I begin right here.  Carving time out for myself.  Making my desires and needs a priority.  Accepting the messiness that comes along with it and savoring every moment. 

How about you?  How are you showing up for yourself?