Do You Have What It Takes?

That's the question I've been asking myself a lot lately. Do you have what it takes to do this job? To be this wife? To raise these kids? To lead this life? Do you have what it takes?

I don't know.

I don't know if I am patient enough, strong enough, wise enough to do this. I don't know if I know enough to do all of this well. This life seems very big sometimes; the responsibility of loving, supporting and partnering with Mr. Awesome, the responsibility of raising, guiding and nurturing The Wee Ones, the responsibility of being a good friend, a good leader, a good person all seems like a lot sometimes.

And it is, when you take it all at once.

Here's the thing, though, life isn't meant to be a one mom show. People are not designed to do 'it all' and certainly not designed to do it all alone, not even moms - and yet we kill ourselves trying. We juggle sports, hobbies, clubs, exercise, fashion, meals, laundry, cleaning, relationships, homework, health and a hundred other real or perceived responsibilities and then there's this crazy thing we do to ourselves. We compare. We compare ourselves, our kids, our husbands, our lives to other more successful, more 'together' women. We hold up a measure stick and wear our judgement like old Jacob Marley's chains, whether we decide we measure up or not.

There is no freedom in comparison. There is no joy in judgement. There is no life in keeping up with the Joneses. There is no way to be you when you are trying to measure up with someone else. There is no way to be you when you are trying to live up to the expectations you think others have of you. There is no way to be you when you are living to please/impress others. There is no way. There is no way.

So, do you have what it takes to let it all go? Do you have what it takes to live freely, to live happily in your own skin, in your own life, in your own way? Do you have what it takes?

Do I?

Do I have what it takes to be true to who I am created to be? Do I have what it takes to be honest about my abilities, my capacity? Do I have what it takes to set the right priorities and stick to them? Do I have what it takes to lead this life?

Here's the deal ... let's stop. Let's stop looking at each other and trying to figure out how we measure up. Let's stop placing expectations on ourselves based on what we think everyone thinks about us. Let's stop passing judgment on ourselves and others. Let's stop. Let's stop. Let's stop.

Let's start celebrating each other. Let's cheer each other on. Let's encourage each other. Let's recognize we are all different and we are all magnificent. Let's honour the gifts and talents that make us unique. Let's start living comfortably in our own lives. Let's start.

Do you have what it takes?

All the mistakes I make arise from forsaking my own station and trying to see the object from another person's point of view.  ~Ralph Waldo Emerson