The first time I actually prayed for myself
I was listening to an audiobook early this week, Radical Acceptance by Tara Brach and she talked about accepting who we truly are and giving love and kindness to ourselves. Sounds easy, right? What’s the big deal?
Well, here’s my truth, I am my own worst enemy. I get so hard on myself and a lot of times, I catch myself feeding my mind with these critical thoughts and not so good things that I wouldn’t even dare think of for a friend or a loved one. I mean, I don’t think I’m the only one who does this, right? I know many of us do this. We can get mean with ourselves, and I will never understand why.
If you’re like me, you know it can be debilitating at times especially when you’re filled with self-doubts and insecurities on certain days. And it’s not good. It’s not healthy.
So, when I heard this part of the book, the prayer for love and kindness to care for oneself, I was deeply moved and I listened to it over and over. Then I decided to write it down. She encourages her readers/listeners to say it during meditation, or as a short prayer every day as a simple practice to accepting and loving oneself deeply.
On a side note, I have been practicing meditation (20 minutes, twice a day) for 2 and a half years now, probably one of the most impactful tools I learned that really helped me, my anxiety, and everything else. I can talk about this so much more but for this blog’s sake, I just wanted to share this for context… So, when she mentioned saying this prayer several times like a meditation, it drew me in. And honestly, I don’t think I really pray about myself. I pray more about my family, my dreams and goals, and everyone else so I thought this would be so beautiful to do regularly.
I had this prayer written down for my morning routine, but I loved it so much that I decided to create a wallpaper for my phone as well and print it out for my workspace. I want to see it often and be reminded by its personal message anytime and anywhere. I mean, it’s such a simple prayer yet so raw, vulnerable, humbling, and empowering all at the same time. And I want to share it with you, both the wallpaper for your phone and the pdf file you can print and post on your wall. OR you can just copy the text to the notes app on your phone so you can read it every day too. Because I believe it can help you too and support your overall mental and emotional health.
Now, it’s only been 3 days since I started doing this. I don’t really know what will be the outcome. I just plan to do it every day, as a way of taking care of my heart and my mind.
Would you join me? Can we support each other and pray for love and kindness? First, for ourselves - because it all starts with self-love, right? Then, we can pray for our loved ones too.
Here it is…
May I be filled with love & kindness.
May I be held in love and kindness.
May I accept myself just as I AM.
May I be happy.
May I touch great and natural peace.
May I know the natural joy of being alive.
May my heart and mind awaken.
May I be free.[Tara Brach Ph.D.]
What you think? If you decide to start your day reading this prayer every day, I would really love to know.
Download phone wallpaper here.
Download PDF file here.
Please note: The font on the wallpaper may look small. However, when you add to your phone and set it up as your wallpaper, you can adjust the size and font will look bigger.