enough is enough.

If I were to get a tattoo, which will probably never happen, but if pigs ever start to fly while dolphins stroll along the shore, one tattoo idea (of the few I have in my head) would be the word, "enough." Not good enough, just enough.

"Am I good enough?"

This question drives me bananas. I'd be lying to you if I told you I didn't ask myself this question frequently throughout the week.

I've been mulling over the significance of this question these past few weeks and how it applies to me, how it hovers over my entire being and how rigidly stifling its effect is. And then I realized, I'm probably not the only one whose door is frequently solicited by this taxing question. In fact, it probably sneaks up on most of us at some point in our lives. So, what can we do about it? How can we fight it? Will a consistent response of "yes" be convincing enough to ward off any future visits? Probably not, unfortunately.

If any of you are like me and thrive on accomplishment and productivity, you probably love scratching things off your to-do list and delight in moving forward by regularly improving and bettering things within your grasp...perfectionists of some sort. Well, the problem with people like us is that we always want to better some aspect of ourselves, so being able to say "no," to the "am I good enough" question, allows us to work towards something, to improve our temper, reupholster the couch, pursue a more meaningful career...whatever the case may be - if perfectionist, task oriented people are ever visited by the "am I good enough" question, it's easy to mistake it for an innocent invitation to better yourself or something around you...when in reality, the temptation to believe this question is sweet little red riding hood, when it's really the grotesque wolf is where the unraveling begins.

The biggest problem with this question is it's alluringly deceptive disguise. By having the word "good" monogrammed on its shirt, we mistake it for a friend and before we know it, we've invited it into our homes, we've offered it a comfy place to sit, and we're making it's favorite dinner. But the word "good" is where the problem lies.

The only way to successfully approach this question is to forget worrying about if we're good enough by beginning to fully experience that we are in fact, enough. The individuals we are right now, regardless of how behind we are on our to-do lists, how deficient we perceive ourselves to be, or how poorly we're performing the tasks at hand...are enough; we are enough.

For some of you overachievers, like myself, you may think to yourself that there's nothing wrong with wanting to be better, because settling for second best is never an option. But when we believe we are enough, exactly where we are today, we are NOT...I repeat, we are NOT settling. What we are doing is allowing ourselves the freedom to value all we are and all we're not. Because when we begin to appreciate the beauty of growth and the dignity of acceptance, rather than being chained to them for the sole sake of proving yourself or climbing higher on the totem pole, we cease clinging to perfection and success as a false sense of security and we begin to embrace the beautiful vulnerability of the messy journey.

So, enough is enough...the next time that pesky question "am I good enough?" comes knocking on your door wanting stuffed shells for a third time this week, politely respond with, "I am enough," and confidently close the door. For when we cut ourselves some slack and gratefully appreciate who we are today by realizing we are enough, then we can live life more freely, more vulnerably, more fully. We can delight in the people we were created to be because every ounce of our soul is enough...being enough is enough.

our sweet pea at the park last week. fifteen & sixteen month pics coming soon.

And if you're interested in watching a really awesome video about this topic, here's the link. I'm slightly obsessed.

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