Kerri On Down The Road

Richard Wagamese released a book entitled Embers: One Ojibway's Meditations, and I cannot recommend it enough.  It is filled with pages of insights and beautiful thoughts, and if you have the ability to listen to it as an audiobook, it resonates even more deeply.   One of his passages has really resonated with me lately, and I wanted to share it with you as I start this post:     "When there's a crack in my mirror, I can't see myself as I am--all I see is the crack.  The crack tells me             that there is something wrong with me, that I'm not enough and that this is how others see me, too.  It's            not a question of finding a better mirror.  It's about seeing beyond the crack.  I am not, not ever will be,            perfect.  But I don't need to live for approval.  I need to live for acceptance and joy in the unique,  ...

 The other day in a therapy session my counsellor made a point of telling me that she noticed I had started to make decisions that centred my best interests and how happy she was to see this taking place.  I thanked her and continued on in the moment, however those words stayed with me after our call.  They are still bumping around in my head now, days later.  I think that the reason this comment was so impactful was that I hadn't realized it was taking place.  And the more I thought about it, I also realized just how absent this type of thinking had been up until now.   Saying no to things that are just not for me is a new skill I am developing and it is not easy.  The decisions that I described to my counsellor that morning were not earth-shattering however they would have absolutely added stress to an already busy schedule and would have potentially led to resentment and frustration as time went on.  Looking at it from this lens, it may se...

 Garlic breath...often a reminder of a lovely meal, perhaps an Italian feast, or a savory falafel and hummus, or maybe as part of a symphony of roasted vegetables.  Not often something that is linked with a chocolate peanut butter smoothie...until it was. So there I was, in my kitchen talking with my sons and making my one of my usual protein smoothies.  Something that I do on a daily basis, and something that I have come to make while on autopilot.  I change the ingredients and will alternate between a chocolate or vanilla base and some of the flavourings but for the most part, the recipe remains the same.  Until that afternoon, when I found myself reaching for the spices I add and before I knew it, tapping in a LOT of garlic powder!  When I realized what I had been doing, I stopped in shock and dismay.  The smoothie was about half-built by this point in time and although I had basically ruined it by adding garlic, I decided to forge ahead in the hope...

 What a simple concept, on paper.  Just focusing on taking one step at a time, putting one foot in front of the other to slowly and steadily make your way.  No planning or focusing on where these steps will take you, how long it will take or what the path traveled will actually look like.  Just focusing on putting that one foot in front of the other.  This may sound repetitive and if I have talked about this before, bear with me.  You see I have finally come to a point in my journey where my head and heart have found alignment with this idea and practice.  It has only taken me nudging up against the same limiting beliefs that I have held about myself over and over again to finally arrive at the a-ha that has allowed me to push past this barrier.  I guess you could say that the headache and heart ache finally caught up with me and has made me realize that I can no longer ignore or push down the truth that I hold inside of me.  That may sound p...