We can own our story, where we’ve come from, the mistakes and struggle we’ve walked through, shame and judgement-free. We can name our pain, grief, and trauma and remember that they are not our identity.
We’re allowed to point out the conditioning that has caused us harm, the ways we’ve learned to feel safe, feel loved, and get our needs met, be proud of ourselves for surviving and getting this far, and choose a new brave and hopeful path forward.
When we feel safe or resourced enough and ready to shake things up, we can choose to write and embody a new story for our life.
We are strong enough to do this
We are strong enough to do this. Strong enough to reclaim our voice and agency, to set new healthy boundaries, and learn to honor our wiring. Strong enough to face head-on both the uncomfortable consequences and the amazing gifts of choosing a life of wholeness and freedom. We are strong enough to learn to live around our deep grief, to be messy and in progress, and intentionally handcraft a brave and beautiful life.
I know this often doesn’t feel true in the moment. Life can be incredibly hard, in some seasons more than others. But we don’t have to figure it all out at once. One breath at a time, one moment or hour at a time, we walk out our values and vision. We find our way in action, not before.
You are strong enough to do this work, friend. We don’t have to be perfectly strong, always strong, or independently strong. Just strong enough in every moment to take one more breath, one more step forward, send one quick text asking for help when we feel like we’re drowning, or say yes one more time to the leading of our inner wisdom.
And here’s some really good news: we grow into the strength that we need for every season.
what does it mean to embody A NEW STORY?
The dictionary defines “embodiment” as “the representation or expression of something in a tangible or visible form.” Somatic teacher Prentis Hemphill teaches that “embodiment is what is currently practiced or habituated in us. It is also the process of becoming more aware of and practiced in behaviors.”
There are times in life where we come up to a crossroads or significant choice-point – the messy middle season of life is a common time for this.
We come to the end of ourselves or the end of the story we’ve been living. We sense it. We feel it deep in our bones. We might have no idea what it’s going to look like or how to get from here to there.. but it isn’t our business to see the end. It’s our business to decide if we’re going to listen to the inner voice of direction or not.
This is a pivotal time in life in which we must exercise our power of choice, our agency, and choose our path forward. Choose our response to the reality of life.
Old wounds can be stitched up. Old instinctual patterns of thought, emotion, and behaviour can be replaced with new patterns. Shaming or limiting stories can be rewritten. We can break out of the chains and spaces that have held us small, down, in fear and judgment, or told us we need to hide parts of our true self for belonging. We can stop living on auto-pilot, bent on people-pleasing, or obsessed with looking for wisdom outside of ourselves.
We can acknowledge the reality of what is, the joy and the pain, and turn our heart forward to write and embody a new vision for our self and our life.
You’re not done yet. Keep writing.
We can’t grieve our losses until we name them.
Linda Thai
10 posts to help you reclaim your voice and agency and embody a new story for your life
REMEMBER: To walk in freedom and feel safe, at home, and joyful in your body and your life you must reclaim your voice and your agency, own your strength and story, and trust that you grow into the strength that you need for each season.
HOW TO SHOW UP WITH STRENGTH WHEN YOU MUST BEGIN AGAIN
Forced or willingly there come times in life when familiar ground falls away and we are thrust into turbulence or transition and must begin again. Read the full post here.
Live Whole and Brave: Trust the Magic of New Beginnings
When we stand at the threshold of a new story, it’s normal to feel excitement, anticipation, and also some fear or discomfort. We don’t know for sure what lies ahead, but the truth is we’ve never known what tomorrow will hold. It’s healthy and wise to give our fear and grief a voice. Read the full post.
5 POWERFUL STRATEGIES FOR A JOYFUL LIFE: MIDLIFE AND BEYOND
There’s plenty we do not control in life that can impact our sense of wellbeing, this is part of being human in a messy world. But for a joyful life it’s important to take intentional action where we can. Read the full post.
IT TAKES COURAGE TO BECOME WHO YOU REALLY ARE
None of us have truly “easy” lives. We all encounter struggle and opportunity to sink or rise above. We each receive the same invitation to growth. Life will happen either way, but our experience of life will vary wildly depending on whether or not we accept the invitation. Read the full post.
TURNING 50: CLOSING OUT A DECADE OF STRENGTH AND STRUGGLE
The past decade of my life has been full of sorrow and pain, practicing strength and bravery, but joy, adventure, deep growth, and day upon day of ordinary beauty too. It all came tangled up together and I’ve decided to embrace it all. If I want to live fully, I see no way around this. Read the full post.
You Can write and embody a new story for your life
I saw myself carrying sloppy buckets of joy, one in each hand. They splashed over onto my bare feet as I slowly walked up the grassy path. Moments before I saw in my mind’s eye a big gaping wound being stitched up and *heard* the clear, resounding thought: “this is no longer your story. You will write a new story.” Read the full post.
JOY IS THE MOST VULNERABLE EMOTION! HOW TO EXPAND YOUR CAPACITY FOR JOY
You don’t have to hunt for joy, manufacture it, or figure out how to lead a stress-free “perfect” life. You can ALLOW joy to live alongside whatever else you’re experiencing. Read the full post.
TO THE LATE BLOOMERS: IT’S NOT TOO LATE
If you feel like you’ve missed the boat, or haven’t ‘made it’ yet, I want to encourage you to reframe this. Instead, look at the remaining years of your life as full of opportunity, no matter what your past looks like. You get to bloom, more than once, and when you are ready, not when the world thinks you should. Read the full post.
How to Hold Space Without Losing Yourself in the Process
Based on my lived experience and my coaching and health education work, I explore what it means to hold space, how to know if you’re the right person to hold space for another, and 5 ways to hold space without losing yourself in the process. Read the full post.
YOU FEEL WEARY AND A LITTLE BEAT UP BY LIFE: MAP A NEW VISION
“Women have been portrayed as lamenting our continued maturation into midlife and older adulthood. Older women are supposed to fade graciously – or gloomily – into the woodwork. Yet, as studies demonstrate, the truth is that women continue to DEVELOP THEIR STRENGTHS and actually BLOOM, rather than fade, with the advent of midlife.” Read the full post.
Learn a kinder way of being in your body + life
The Brave + Beautiful Community is for growth-minded women in the middle season of life. Members learn to befriend themselves and deepen self-trust, and show up fully to their messy and beautiful lives with freedom, health, and joy.
NOW WHAT? RESOURCES TO HELP YOU live whole and brave and embody a new story for your life
Take another intentional step.
THE JOY WORKSHOP
If you want to get curious about what JOY looks, sounds, and feels like in your body and your life and learn how to feel more comfortable with a wider range of low intensity and high intensity positive and “negative” emotions, you want to learn how to practice self-compassion to create a sense of safety in your body and your life and ; learn a bit about your nervous system and what happens when you experience different core emotions and what you can do to thrive; and you want to feel empowered to expand your capacity for joy (or all emotional experience), learn more or purchase the joy workshop here.
let’s work together through private coaching
Acknowledge your agency and power of choice and use it to build a life and world you want to live in. Recognize that we grow into the strength we need and find our way in action, not before. Develop strategies for getting unstuck when needed and take responsibility for learning the tools that will allow you to write and embody a new story for your life. Learn how we can work together.