Dear you,
Hi, there.
How are you doing? Did you eat well?
Lately, a lot of things are happening in our lives. We never expect that many unexpected things will force us to change our plans. Of course, it seems like we live in uncertainty. We might be confused and wonder when would all the suffering end. The pain and worries seem to be our daily taste.
Lately, we have been hurt, left alone, and weak as if the world was endlessly trying to knock us down until we were unable to even believe in ourselves and consider ourselves disappointing.
But, we keep fighting for solutions over any single matter that happens. We keep doing the best, even though we only survive with a small light in our hearts. Therefore, thank you for working hard.
Thank you for letting that little light burn within your heart. It’s not easy, but I know that you can be grateful for being able to do it.
I hope you understand that in the midst of a love-and-hate relationship with everything that we’ve experienced, we are actually learning to get closer to ourselves. Because you see, we deserve to be loved, including by ourselves.
The world may try to bring us down until we feel no one understands us and the one who stays is only ourselves. But, once again, God will not give poisonous snakes to those who ask for bread and in times of pain like this, God gives us so many blessings through ourselves and people around us.
When we remember for a moment, it’s so torturous when we blame things and live in anxiety. But I want to remind you that we are not alone and it feels very peaceful when we realize that we are not alone in undergoing this. All matters that appear in our life are common humanity.
Self-compassion increases our understanding to see the world more fully and recognize our needs. By being mindful, we know what needs to be improved and become a better person.
Being kind to ourselves doesn’t mean being selfish, but we respect and give us a little strength when we are in pain. Having warm feelings makes us have a positive outlook on the world. So, let’s have a closer connection with ourselves.
Give ourselves the same amount of love like we do to others because we also deserve compassion within ourselves when we get hurt.
When we ask others “How are you doing?”, ask ourselves the same way with a gentle voice and full of humility. It’s totally fine not to be okay or tired sometimes. If you are too tired to think, then try to feel things with your heart. Allow yourself to feel love and enjoy the compassionate feeling that blooms in your heart.
I often catch myself amazed at how love can melt the frozen feelings and why don’t we try to put some on our hearts too? When we can give an amount of love to comfort our friends, it is also possible to give the same to ourselves.
Give some space for our soul to hear out our feelings and understand that we are also human beings, then give ourselves a warm hug that comforts us. Buying a gift as an appreciation for our hard work, such as an ice cream or our favorite dinner will be great too.
So, let’s start by asking ourselves a simple question:
“Dear self, how are you doing?“
About Author:
Jesslin Angelina is a psychology undergraduate student who is interested in mental health and people’s growth. Her friends told her that she is good at making handicrafts, but never ask her to do make-up, haha. Through her story, she hopes all of us can figure out a simple act to gain self-compassion. Feel free to discuss with her thru email angelinajesslin@gmail.com.
Photo by Conner Ching on Unsplash
Dear you, i love you.
-my self