Inspiration is a must when you decide to start a journey. 

My goals over the last several years have included getting healthy- mentally, spiritually, emotionally, and physically. But each goal and each stage has required new inspiration and a lot of work I wasn’t prepared for. 

I dug into myself, laid out my wounds, I stepped into my hurts and my anger and I found myself less inspired than I had hoped. I got stuck. After a while, inspiration came. The problem was, I was stuck and didn’t have the energy to turn the inspiration into action. It was like looking at Pinterest but never actually trying any of the things I pinned.  

I was reading books, setting boundaries and meeting with encouraging friends, but I hadn’t gotten out of my woe is me state and started doing the things I dream of. I was still waiting on someone else to take care of me, to go along side me. I still craved the ‘atta girls’ I rarely received as a child.

Each step of my journey has taken renewed inspiration. When I recognized that I was stuck, I had to find a new perspective. I had to see that inspiration would give me purpose. Without the purpose, I get lazy, I get stagnant. My purpose has always relied on others. I want to fit in. I want to be accepted. I want to please. I want to see others happy. But this new perspective on inspiration pushes me to take action toward my goals. 

Recently I learned that the grief process isn’t just something we naturally go through, it has a purpose. It turns our pain into memories and allows us to heal from all kinds of loss. Once I understood this, I was able to begin grieving and moving forward, healing the wounds while still holding on to the memories. 

A pastor recently said, “Maybe it’s time to step out of one of your studies to make time to serve in a new way.” I have spent a lot of time taking in information, learning and healing. This inspired me to turn from the inward to the outward. The same day I heard this, I sat reading and editing Plaid’s October articles on inspiration. I realized I need others for inspiration, but I have to do the work. I have to learn the lessons, make my life change, take the next step in my health. 

One article suggested a vision board. I love the creativity involved in laying out my ideas and goals in pictures and quotes to look at each day. Another article told the story of a woman with a traumatic childhood working hard through adversity to become a doctor. I have allowed my past to tell me who I am and what I could, or more truthfully what I could not do. And another article said that inspiration matters! I was always made to feel like being inspired by someone else was nothing more than copying them and negated my own accomplishments. So I just stopped. NO MORE! 

I have been living my life waiting on someone to not only inspire me but to begin the work, as well. With purpose and ideas, I am ready to move on. It is time for this inspiration to take hold and move me into the vision of all I can do. 

Thank you for the inspiration ladies! I am moved by so many around me and it is time for me to act on all I have learned, to serve in a new way. If you haven’t, I suggest looking at the inspiring October articles and find your own inspiration.