SUMMER BLOOMIN’
Photo by Jonathan Borba:
It’s summer! Summer brings about so many different feelings and emotions. It’s the end of one season and the beginning of another obviously, in the nature realm of life. With summer we start to see Mother Nature take her full course. Flowers bloom to their fullness; birds chirp sweetly and sometimes very loudly. The sun is beaming upon us with more heat than we can withstand some days. This heat may allow us to escape to the backyard for a dip in the pool or to the beach to soak up the sun and have some family fun.
Summer can also be an opportunity for us to allow ourselves to bloom and take flight. Summertime is a chance to slow down and catch your breath. If you're a parent you're not shuffling kids to and from school, sitting in a 30-minute car rider line, packing lunches, getting school clothes together, and as the saying goes “ripping and running” as much. So, summer can present a time to focus, and dance to the rhythm of a new season while giving way for your authentic self to bloom.
Allowing your authentic self to bloom is to be able to just be you in any setting. Embracing the person that you are growing into is not always easy. One thing about flowers is they have no choice but to bloom. Once they have gone through the different stages of their life cycle, they become the beautiful blooms we pass at the park, give to someone, or receive as a gift. Before they bloom, they are tight and closed in, and slowly they begin to open and show their fullness. We should be like flowers. If you've been in a closed-in season, let the flower be your reminder to open and fully bloom this summer season.
Here are some ways to allow yourself to bloom this summer into your most authentic self:
1. Evaluate who you are and where you are.
If you are not pleased or satisfied with who you are or where you are in life, this is a good time to reevaluate what you can do to be better and do better. Summer is the halfway point to the new year and a chance to evaluate the first half of the year. Change your routines and systems if they are not working for you.
2. Get out and do something different.
How will you ever know if you like something if you don't get out and try different things and meet different people? I can be socially awkward in spaces and places where I don't know anyone. But I've embraced this as a chance to meet people and get to know people authentically. So, get out and go to a new restaurant, try a new food, a new experience, and travel.
3. Stop comparing and start embracing.
When we constantly compare ourselves and our lives to others, we rob ourselves of the ability to love all the things that make us unique and special. Love you, and everything about you. Speak beautiful words to you and awaken the spirit of love and gratitude from within.
Whatever you choose to do this summer, bloom into an amazing you!
Ashley Jones
Ashley Jones an HR Professional, writer, wife and mother. She loves to read, journal and listen to live music. She is passionate about encouraging people to journal as a way of releasing their thoughts and feelings. She lives by the motto: "Do what's best for you and works for you."