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| Sara Bareilles |
My dear friends and readers- I would like to introduce you to this beautiful woman, if you don't already know who she is. This is Sara Bareilles. For years, I've listened to her music and journeyed with her through various heart breaks and dark moments in my life and she's always had the perfect, poetic words to describe what I was too afraid to express. I always felt like I had a perfect friend in that moment, who had waded through the same muck I felt I was drowning in, with a message of hope and reassurance-that it was okay to actually FEEL what I was feeling. I will always be indebted to her for that action alone.
But my friends, she has done it yet again!
In her latest EP entitled "Once Upon Another Time", (which is pretty amazing, at that) she strays away from her typical piano ballads and goes with a simple tune on the ukelele that pretty much speaks for itself. What is beauty, really? Why is it so difficult to see the light struggling to burst from within? She assures those who simply think they're not 'pretty enough' to step up and recognize the beauty that IS within themselves, to not listen to the voices of the world that will just fade away, but accept and recognize who they are. I've been waiting so long for an artist who happens to have such a large fan base to tell girls that they are good enough, strong enough, and beautiful enough and they don't have to wait until a man comes along to tell them that. The power is in their hands to acknowledge the fact that they are beautiful and can accomplish wonderful things. This song has helped me out tremendously in the last week alone. If any of you readers have ever struggled with believing that you are, in fact, a beautiful girl, this song is for you. Acknowledge and embrace who you truly are. Throw aside the facades that DON'T MATTER. I PROMISE, they are only holding you back from your true potential. Share with the world your TRUE beauty -the beauty of your smile, your words, your hands, your heart, and your SOUL.
"Beautiful Girl"
You wanna walk into the room like that other girl does
The one that’s always making everybody fall in love
You see…girl you’re a lot like me.
She rearranges all the light in the room so you’re always in the shadows,
Well that’s what it feels like to you…
Baby I’ve been there too.
And I know how much it can sometimes hurt,
You feel like the whole world has made you the ugly girl.
Take it from me that you have to see it first.
So before you trade in your summer skin for those high heeled shoes,
To make him want to be with you.
Let me remind you one more time…
That just maybe, you’re beautiful but you just cant see.
So why don’t you trust me,
They’ll see it too you beautiful girl you
You wanna lay the blame on somebody else,
All these tiny little minds that leave you up on a shelf.
But okay, I’ve seen it done that way.
Just in case nobody ever comes through,
Riding in to come to your rescue.
You still have a chance,
You don’t have to be asked to dance.
I know how much you’ve been dying to say,
Look how much everybody loves me.
Guess who gets left when everyone else fades away
So before you trade in your summer skin for those high heeled shoes,
To make him want to be with you.
Let me remind you one more time…
That just maybe, you’re beautiful but you just can’t see.
So why don’t you trust me
They’ll see it too you beautiful girl you
You wanna walk into the room like that other girl does
The one that’s always making everybody fall in love
You see…girl you’re a lot like me.
She rearranges all the light in the room so you’re always in the shadows,
Well that’s what it feels like to you…
Baby I’ve been there too.
And I know how much it can sometimes hurt,
You feel like the whole world has made you the ugly girl.
Take it from me that you have to see it first.
So before you trade in your summer skin for those high heeled shoes,
To make him want to be with you.
Let me remind you one more time…
That just maybe, you’re beautiful but you just cant see.
So why don’t you trust me,
They’ll see it too you beautiful girl you
You wanna lay the blame on somebody else,
All these tiny little minds that leave you up on a shelf.
But okay, I’ve seen it done that way.
Just in case nobody ever comes through,
Riding in to come to your rescue.
You still have a chance,
You don’t have to be asked to dance.
I know how much you’ve been dying to say,
Look how much everybody loves me.
Guess who gets left when everyone else fades away
So before you trade in your summer skin for those high heeled shoes,
To make him want to be with you.
Let me remind you one more time…
That just maybe, you’re beautiful but you just can’t see.
So why don’t you trust me
They’ll see it too you beautiful girl you
Now that you've listened to this song and acknowledged how beautiful you truly are, I want to take this a step further.
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| Mirror Challenge |
Sit and think of one of your heroes of all time. Who is your role model? Why do you want to be like them? What attributes do they have that you admire? Really think about it. Write those attributes down. A dear friend of mine once told me that genius you see in others is really genius you acknowledge within yourself. Those attributes that you wrote down? They're IN YOU! You possess EVERY SINGLE ONE of those traits. Now, they may not be up to par, but that's okay. You have the capability to hone and perfect those attributes. Re-write your list onto a 3x5 card. Write it in 1st person, with I am in front of every attribute you listed previously. ( see below for an example) Every morning, right when you wake up or walk out the door, say them aloud as you gaze at yourself in the mirror. FEEL the words. Believe them with all that you are. I.e.- "I am a beautiful Daughter of God with an incredible capacity for good. I am not afraid of what others think of me and embrace who I am always. I give my all 100% of the time. My spirit is infectious and I continually cause everyone around me to be their best self. I am not afraid to give of my heart and accept everyone for the person they are now..." etc. Do this for 14 days. By taking part in this experience, I came to know with a greater assurance who I really am and what I can do. If this is extremely hard for you, do it in the morning and right before you go to sleep. You will see results. We become products of what we think and what we do. You will begin to love the person you see in front of you, and accept how beautiful she REALLY is. You aren't doing the world any favors by continually hiding in your shell. Break free. Be you. Be beautiful.
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. "
~Marianne Williamson from A Return To Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles
