Self-Evidence + Authenticity

What started out as a little idea in my head ended up in over 50 posts by all of you. And those are just the ones I had time to read. To all of you who participated, I give a huge and heaping helping of gratitude. My intent for this challenge was to engage in my community and see what impact we could have. I know the impact has been great on me, and I suspect for you, as well.

I could look at my intent to write on all thirteen topics and wonder if it was just too lofty for me with all I’ve got going on (I “only” completed nine, including this one) . I could look at the failed attempt and see nothing but failure. Neither of those ideas are true.

Intentions are never too lofty. They are simply intentions. Some we meet, and others we don’t. These are the facts, not to be construed into judgments. I will eventually write on all thirteen topics, and continue to tag them under #SelfEv. I invite you to do the same, if you’re so inclined.

One of the greatest things about life is all the learning that’s available to us while we’re here, should we choose to see it. Here’s a bit of what I learned during this challenge.

• People are necessary in our lives. We share love and creativity and passion and intention and inspiration. We each live uniquely and have something—many things—to offer others in the way of growth and abundance.
• Challenges are supposed to be challenging. Otherwise, they’re just requests and items stuck on a to-do list with little or no regard. When we accept challenges and stretch ourselves, we grow. And growth is beautiful.
• I will never get it all done. And still, I’ll keep on keepin’ on.
• Running a blog challenge is a FANTASTIC way to meet new people and engage in the hearts and lives of others in a way that has a positive impact. It’s also a great way to dig deeper into the hearts and lives of those I already have a soft spot for. I feel like my family has grown this month, and my heart is full of joy about that.
• Authenticity is about me being me, and you being you. It’s about appreciating ourselves for who we are. It’s about exploring ourselves and seeing who’s there and what’s changed since the last time we dug deep. It’s about honoring not only the exploration, but about the person we continually find on this inside and sharing that person with the rest of the world.
• Truth is not about honesty (except when it is); it’s about honoring what’s real in our lives, and giving it a voice.
• And last, but not least…I learned about you. You, the readers, the writers, the beautiful souls. I have been reminded of just how beautiful being human is, and how much we all are simply trying to live a good life—and figure out exactly what that means. I have been reminded of the importance of sharing, of giving, of loving, of receiving.

Your words have touched me so deeply, that I will never be the same. I am both grateful for and humbled by each post on these thirteen topics that mean so much to us and our worlds. My heart is overflowing with gratitude for each and every participant, whether I read your posts or not. Your willingness to be seen, to be heard, and have an impact on those who are drawn to you is inspiring and awesome, in the truest sense of the words. I am blessed.
And to those of you who simply read and did not participate, I am grateful for you, as well. Without you, who would we have had an impact on?

I thank each and every one of you—readers and participants and supporters and well-wishers—for the motivation, inspiration, thoughts, ideas and emotions you’ve expressed along the way. I look forward to continuing to be inspired by each of you, and hope you’ll stick around as I delve deeper into my own Self-Evidence and Authentic Realities.

Love & Light to you all,

Dian