As I was sorting through some old writings this morning I found a letter I wrote to myself in 2023, shortly after leaving my 31 year common-law marriage. Desperate to rediscover myself after living someone else’ s goals and dreams for so long, I had enrolled in a program with the wonderful Alice May Redmond, who challenged me to write out what agreements I was making with myself as I moved through the program.
That letter, which I share with you below, resonates just as deeply today as it did back then. By sharing it, I hope you might be inspired to create your own. Save it somewhere you can return to easily and reread it regularly. Let the agreements you make with yourself be the touchstone to return to when your journey back to self feels bumpy and you need a gentle reminder of who you are and why you set out along the path.
I am here because…I need to learn to love myself and accept my power so that I can open myself up confidently and authentically to all the love, experiences and opportunities the universe is sending to me. So that I am a receptive vessel for the calm, honest, healed, passionate and grounded lover the Universe has chosen for me.
I recognise that my patterns of closure are that I leave things unfinished because I’m afraid of failing, not being good enough, and of people judging and laughing at me.
The agreement I make with myself is opening my heart to all of these new beliefs and energies I’m ready to embody…. sensuality, sexiness, my power, my goofiness, being a finisher, a healer, a goddess, and a bringer of light and levity. Power, love and light.
I agree to:
- Finish what I start
- Be selective with where I put my time and focus
- Honor and follow through on my commitment to be alcohol-free for the rest of 2023
My boundaries with myself/others are…
- Never complain, never explain – my choices are mine and I don’t have to share my reasons.
- I schedule time for my commitments every day
- I respect that other people may want different choices for and from me, but I honour and adhere to my commitments to myself.
In the moments I don’t show up in the way I intended…
I agree that I will not go into a place of disempowering talk, judgement, or criticism, I will show love to myself by pausing to forgive myself, then taking time to sit and reflect on what has led me off path, then redirect myself back to the actions and feelings that return me to my commitments.
What agreements will you make with yourself today?
