Je Suis Best Self

I AM…What? (fill in your own blank). Charlie, a seeker, my best-self? How would you complete that two word query? What do you stand for? We believe many things about ourselves (not all of them so pleasant, if we are being honest).When an event rocks our world and sounds like a call to action, we are reminded that, as with the dawn of a new day, we are provided with an opportunity to ruminate about the very principals we desire to be defined by. We additionally get to decide what we are going to do about them. If you wrote out the tenets of your “I AM” mission statement – what would they be, and how easy, or difficult, would it be for you to put them out on paper? Do you live by them?What does it mean to be our best selves? Is that a part-time activity or something incorporated into the whole of your life? The choice is yours for the taking and directly correlates to how happy and vibrant you are. So how do we thread it through the very essence of our lives? Once we decide what it is we stand for, we need to step forward and put art in motion, to breathe in life, to put our money where our mouths are – to activate and reactivate it, and hold ourselves accountable to none other than ourselves, that person staring back at you in the mirror each morning.It may be the point I am at in my life, or the shifting spiritual tides in the world that I am awakening to, or the tribe I am collecting – or perhaps all of it combined, but I have been noticing people around me taking bold and dramatic steps in their lives – shaking it all up and flipping things on their sides. To some it may appear as if this is being done on a wing and a prayer, and is totally insane. And to others – applauding boldly on the sidelines till their hands hurt from clapping – it is immensely inspiring.Is there something within you hiding away, just waiting to be unleashed – a forgotten dream, or something you are waiting to reveal at a later date when all your ducks are lined up in a row? What if your ducks never line up the way you thought they should, and what if NOW is the moment to make your move?I am continuously being inspired by people around me who are living passionate lives. They are the seekers of the world, who know how to pepper in faith and walk in their very own recipe for stardust. Their lives aren’t perfect, but they keep reaching. This is where beautiful faith emerges…the faith to manifest all that we were meant to become, to live life to its fullest, to thrive and put forth our gifts in the world.For me this is where my overly flexed “limiting beliefs” muscle comes to light. The linear-thinking side of my brain likes to edge into my consciousness and take over – nudging the passionate-dreamer aside. Yes, for me this is a practice. Note to self: Your limiting beliefs are lies (oh, and you made them up).Nine months ago, I took a bold step forward in the world and put forth my website – essentially outing myself, as I revealed my pain, my story, my dreams. I felt as if I was standing naked in the town square, and in some ways, well – I guess I was doing just that.  But hiding takes an enormous amount of energy. Hiding and controlling and trying to plot it all out, kept me from the magical unfolding.I held a vision that with my new website and announcement to the world that I had arrived as a writer, I would be instantly discovered and ushered off by an agent who would make all of my dreams come true, as publishing and film contracts swirled in my head. When I attended my first writer’s workshop in NYC, I was sheepishly convinced (oxymoron, I know) that I would snag the plum publishing contract they promised to award (I didn’t). I had it all laid out in my mind. That said, I didn’t like all the information I was hearing about the need to build a “platform” and social media following. Well, I won’t have to do that, I smugly told myself. Resistance was in the house, big time!But the truth of the matter is that I had to face-off with that resistance. I reluctantly gave it all a whirl and voila, things started to shift.So these were my ducks and they didn’t line up as I had envisioned. HOWEVER, when I released my attachment to outcome and instead just hopped on the faith train…things started to happen, to appear and to unfold. I knew I wanted to write, so I wrote – voraciously. There was no way I could have imagined that in just nine months from launching my website – I would become Editor-In-Chief of an exciting new digital magazine, BEST SELF. Better yet, that I would be a part of a co-creation, best self movement – that I would be celebrating the voices of others in a similar space.My “I Am…” of a year ago, would read very differently than the one of today. A year ago I was still hiding – from my own power and the power of all of those around me.  To be our best self, we must see the best self in others. We must celebrate its glory and know that we are better by virtue of what we give to the world and others, how we uplift each other.Each morning when I first open my eyes before my feet hit the ground – it is my prayer, Please God, help me to be my best self today. Show me where to go, let me make a difference. Give me faith.Faith is trusting that you don’t have to have all the answers. Faith is tapping into the authenticity that already resides within your very essence. Faith is believing that the Universe has your back and that you can go out there and become all that you were meant to be in this life. The only thing limiting you – is you.I am faith (and so are you). I believe I am meant to reach for my highest potential each day.Je suis Best Self.  You?