Soul Food Monday! - An Inspirational Link Up #34

Man is the soul that uses the body as an instrument of self-expression.

Hola Readers! Hope this morning everyone is having a great rise along with a BIG appetite for life where ever in the world you may find yourself today. A life filled with excitement and prosperity!   Acknowledging first that we are more than just a body is a good start to healthy wholeness.  Let's take time to feed the soul.  We feed our bodies with healthy foods to get enough energy and nutrients for optimal growth and development.  We feed and stimulate the mind with books, movies, plays and games for personal and creative development.  The same principal applies to feeding the soul.  It is just as important to feed the body as it is to feed the soul!  After all, the soul is the core of who we are!  It is who we are.  My own experiences of honoring my soul has helped me make this connection with my very soul.  And my life is so much richer in so many ways I could not have even imagined.  This is why I refuse to believe that we are just here to work, eat, sleep and die.  Yes, these are inevitable experiences we live as human beings, but we are spiritual beings as well.  So join me every Monday with a different food for the soul.

I love Maya Angelou.  I love her spirit.  The other night I watched her interview with Oprah on Super Soul Sunday and I have to say it was so spiritually enriching!  I'm always excited with what she has to share.  One of the things she said that resonated in my soul was something about courage.  "Courage is the most important of all virtues, because without courage you can't practice any other virtue consistently.  You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage"  

She also shared that the best advice she's ever given is to forgive, which encompasses forgiving yourself too.   Not for others, but for yourself.  These past few weeks, though I thought I had forgiven myself for all the wrongs I made as a parent, I learned that in fact I had not.  I was still carrying the guilt in my heart.  And I tell ya, I was consumed in with heavy guilt reminding me how I had failed as a mother.  When the subject of motherhood came up, I always felt less than.  I was so sensitive to the guilt that I could not hold back the tears.  And mind you, I was doing this all by myself to myself because all has mended and the relationship with my daughters have never been stronger.  I love my children.  My children love me.  I learned that I am not perfect.  I did the best I could considering the circumstances.  I took accountability.  Even in my darkest moments, the love for my children never ceased.  As a matter of love, it is my love for my children that kept me sane, along with the faith in my Savior Jesus, giving me courage to overcome the darkness bringing back into the light...my light.  

So I'd like to dedicate this week's Soul Food Monday in recognizing the innate courage that dwells in all of us and to the ability, although sometimes difficult, to forgive others and ultimately to forgive ourselves. 

This week's feed on...forgiveness

Have you forgiven yourself lately?  Go ahead and link up your inspiration for the week.

Tootles!