It's time...

January 13, 2021 Cynthia Besteman

The start of the year has been more fraught than we could have ever expected. The violent terror of the January 6th siege of the Capitol is still very real and raw.

And if we try to take a step back from the news, we're inundated with the usual "new year, new you" messaging: the weight loss programs, the slimming gimmicks, the cleanses.

If there were ever a time to take care of ourselves, to nurture a relationship with ourselves, to love ourselves -- it is now. It takes practice. It takes effort. It may be hard. But we fully believe it is critical. Learning to love ourselves is also how we learn to love one another. It's how we build a more just, equitable, safe society.

This incredibly rough chapter of life that we are living through is changing us, on every level. These changes may be physical, mental, emotional (likely all of the above) -- and they mean that we are still alive. Alive and hopefully growing toward the people and society we aspire to be. On New Years Day, I shared my word for 2021 on Instagram. It is love. Here's a bit of what I shared:

I will work from a place of love, because I truly love what I do.
I will love my post-covid body, because it is working just fine and has gotten me through a lot of crap!
I will love my insecurities, as these insecurities have pushed me
I will love my natural, curly, graying hair. It is how nature made me.
I will love my "gently worn" face, the scars and the lines, the thinning lips
I will face my panic with love, love of who I am in the world

Little did I know on January 1st just how much I would need to employ that last one... but as hokey as it may sound, I have been testing this out the last few days and it's been really helpful.

Can you take a few minutes today to make a list for yourself? Can you practice reading a few sentences aloud each day? I would love to support you in this. And because real talk, a sense of humor, and strong women are at the crux of our lives-- we'll leave you with Amy Shumer's badass advice for thinking about our bodies:

(Click to see the full video)

And honestly, the less time we spend thinking about how we look (or comparing ourselves to others), the more energy we have for the things that truly matter.

We want to encourage our community to step into 2021 feeling strong, resilient, proud, and beautiful -- just as you are. Without changing, without losing or gaining, without covering grays or concealing imperfections.

We'll delve into this more in the coming months, but we wanted to our first message to you in 2021 to be one of LOVE.

We love you -- just the way you are.