Fullness.

With a greater sense of awareness, I am learning to feel full. Fullness to me means completeness, happiness, and success. Success in this case is not measured by worldly accomplishments, gold stars, or publications, but rather by doing what I love.

Doing what I love has taken great time, attention, and awareness to cultivate. It takes dedication, patience, and compassion. I know for sure that when I practice yoga and when I practice writing I am full.

I prioritize carving out the time to do what I love. This requires letting go of inhibitions. A friend of my offered a helpful visualization:

Let the problems, expectations, and judgements, float away as leaves down a stream. Watch them land effortlessly and silently on the surface of the water. As immediate as they land, they are carried away. More leaves will fall, but just the same, let them go.

Letting go frees up space to do what I love as a wholehearted being. I came to a feeling of fullness yesterday during my practice of writing, and was able to put a name on it today during my practice of yoga. As I understand it, it is through these events that I cam to feel full:

I nursed my infant son, I got my 4-year old son to school and picked up on time, I wrote with a colleague and friend while enjoying my second cup of coffee for the morning, I nursed my infant son, prepared food for our family to nourish our bodies, revisited an in progress manuscript, edited a manuscript for colleagues, nursed my infant son, allowed my husband to nap and reset, collaborated with colleagues on a conference proposal, nursed my infant son, walked to yoga, relished in the aroma of “clarity”, nursed my infant son, prepared more food, laughed with my husband while gazing at stars in the evening sky, nursed and comforted my infant son, and slept a restful sleep.

I recount these experiences to remember how I chose to live my day. I chose to live with fullness. I chose to not let the expectations of others (or myself) get in the way of living a full and wholehearted life. I chose to prioritize the health and well being of my family. I prioritized my practice of writing and my practice of yoga. This is success.

I am compelled to add, my measure of success is shared from a place of love. It is not a sentiment to be judged and approved, but rather acknowledged. I wish for you to find fullness in your life. May the goodness and light shine bright from your center. When you are in that place in you, and I am in the place in me, we are one. Namaste.