When I was
little, I thrived in the radiance of my parents love and acceptance. It was all I knew.
I went to school searching for even more love. Instead of acceptance, I found ridicule: too
short, four eyes, awkward, and shy. I withdrew.
I struggled to accept love from anyone but my
parents.
Sad and broken, my soul mate
found me loving me as I was. Children
arrived. I lost myself along
the way. Like a butterfly bursting from
its chrysalis, I emerged. In the end, I discovered the greatest love of all was inside me all along.
Tweet
Self love indeed is the greatest love of all. When we love ourselves, we realize that everything falls in place. Sadly this realization comes in so much later in life!!
ReplyDeleteShilpa, I have found that to be true also. I wish we would realize it early on. Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteKathy, very nice...
ReplyDeleteI think that's got to be one of the hardest things...those school years!
Going from a parents unconditional love to discover there are people that will hate you for no good reason!
Learning to "deal" with that fact of life is a crucial life skill, I think kids that are home schooled miss out on learning this early, and have a harder time later. Just my opinion.
You certainly are a butterfly!!! :-)
Joseph, I agree. As much as I would love to spare both my kids all the heartache they encounter at school, I think that keeping them home is kind of disservice because they wouldn't learn how to get along with all different kinds of people. They would miss out on experiencing school spirit and cheering on teams. They wouldn't learn how to work with others...and they wouldn't learn how to adjust to life's many disappoints and how to roll with the flow. I so appreciate you stopping by to read and for your sweet comments! They mean an awful lot! ♥
DeleteSo true. It took me a long time to realize that it is so much easier to love other people completely when you love and accept yourself.
ReplyDeleteChristine, it really is! Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteWhen you love yourself for who you are, it changes a lot of things! Awesome post! I can relate to you growing up! I was 4 eyes as well!
ReplyDeleteDanny, It sure does. I wish I could have even liked myself growing up. I have a feeling things would have been a lot different! Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteBy the way, Kathy, is it you who are the giggles, or your trucker husband? I love the mental image of the giggling trucker. Can just see him giggling his way along a long straight, boring road. But, hey-ho! You probably mean that you are the giggler :-)
ReplyDeleteChristine, I am the giggler in the house although when you get us together we laugh ourselves silly. I flap my hands like I am trying to fly and almost soak my panties with tears streaming and snot blowing. Yes I go all out when I laugh! LOL He and I are a lot a like but I am the one that gets the giggles. There was one time we went to the rodeo and we had to sit by the animal pens. Well, my daughter and I got laughing so bad because the animals were going beserk and kicking up their own shit. I looked at my daughter and said...guess I know where that line "a man got killed by a flying turd" came from and laughed our happy asses off. My son laughed with us. My husband moved a little away from us, because we were making a spectacle of ourselves and he was embarrassed. The old poop! I had me a grand time. So yes, I am the giggler! ♥
Deleteoh! That was very nice!!
ReplyDeleteI loved how you have mentioned that self-love and realization are so important!!
And that song by Whitney is simply awesome!
pixie, I am so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you so much for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteLoving you is easy. I'm glad you figured that out. ♥
ReplyDeleteJo, awwww you are so nice! Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments! ♥
DeleteYes, the losing of oneself...(sigh) Glad you burst free!
ReplyDeleteAndrea, I am so pleased you liked my post. I wish it would have happened sooner rather than later. My school years would have been a lot more fun! Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteA lot of us have gotten scarred back in school. And memories of those days have do create bittersweet feelings..
ReplyDeleteRicha
Richa, they really do. There is a lot about those days I choose to not remember. It is hard when the time rolls around for high school reunions because I just couldn't bring myself to go. In hindsight, I should have went just because. Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteOh, yes, indeed, it is!!! We cannot truly love others unless we first learn to love ourselves.
ReplyDeleteMartha, very true. There is always something that is missing until you learn to accept and love yourself. You never really feel worthy. Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteWow...amazing how it was the opposite for me. I only found love & acceptance among my friends but not from my family, and definitely not from my parents. I mean they loved me in that I was their daughter but I was never encouraged to follow my heart & dreams, or accepted for who I am. And even now, no one's ever loved me as much as Russell does.
ReplyDeleteJoJo, I am glad that you had friends when you didn't have family. I am so happy you found Russell. Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteBeautifully said Kathy, the best treasures are hidden in the places we seldom think to look for...
ReplyDeleteReshma, I think so and when we finally discover them they are that more precious and exciting! Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteTouching, lovely !!
ReplyDeleteI have four eyes, too. So I know how it will be, as a kid :) You've portrayed the emotions so so well....
Love you for what you are Kathy !
Hugs n Cheers !!
Sreeja, I am so pleased you enjoyed it! Thank you so much for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
Deletea spiritual touch to a very beautiful story. Loved it :)
ReplyDeleteRajlakshmi, I am so pleased you liked it! Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteOh yes...for some of us the schhol days can really be mean..self doubt creeps in..loved your post
ReplyDeleteShiva, that was how my school days are. Now that my kids are in school, I can see it through a whole new perspective and help them from what I learned in hindsight. Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteSo poignant! If we don't love ourselves then who else will....The answer always is within us :)
ReplyDeleteNabanita, Exactly! Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteSelf love is the greatest! Loved reading it :)
ReplyDeleteSheethal, I am so pleased you liked it!! Thank you so much for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteA feel-good story! And so true dear Kathy. thanks for sharing! A bit sad, and also with so much happiness:-) Yes, the greatest love is to love ourselves:-) If we do not then who will?:-)
ReplyDeleteEli, exactly! I have tried to promote that with both of my children ever since they were very small. So far they are doing a lot better with it than I ever did at their age. I am so proud of them! Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteThe greatest love was inside me all along!! Loved it :)
ReplyDeleteSwathi, I am so pleased you liked it! Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteSo beautiful Kathy! Self-love is the most important... we need to be able to love ourselves for everything else to occur...
ReplyDeletePsych Babbler, I am so pleased you enjoyed my post! Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteReplyDelete
I'm glad you realized how special you are, and that you have to give yourself love to appreciate everyone else. Wonderful inspiring post Kathy.
ReplyDeleteMichelle, I am so pleased you liked it! Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteIn great pain, there is great wisdom. Sorry you had to go through that as a child, but so glad you emerged as a butterfly, shrugging off the pain.
ReplyDeleteShailaja, I agree. A person gains so much understanding through suffering in hindsight. Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteI love the song and I am on a journey of discovering self love! Some memories come haunting back, but I seek ways to get past them. I love this song too :)
ReplyDeletePratibha, me too! Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
DeleteThe greatest love was inside me all along..Do I need to say more, Kathy:)
ReplyDeletevishalbheeroo, I am so pleased you enjoyed my post. Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments! ♥
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