Finding Melodie

"Losing. Grieving. Mourning. Loving. Living."

  • Home
  • Finding Me
  • Blog
  • Books & Such
  • The Grievers
  • Bio
  • Contact Mel
  • Knowing God

Self Realization

March 23, 2015 | 6 Comments

There are moments when you look at your body in the mirror and you say:

Hey, I look different.

It’s a moment when your head self connects with your eye self and everything changes. Something happens inside your soul and you recognize:

This is who I am and I am grateful for the me I am.

I am grateful for the me I am becoming.

I am grateful for the me I used to be, because she taught me things I needed to know, I needed to learn so I could grow. 

Two weeks ago such a moment happened to me. Got dressed for work and decided to put on a new top and some basic black capris pants and get things moving. Clothes fit great. My natural hair was on fleek. I felt really good. I happened to glance in the mirror as I tied my shirt and I saw someone I knew and thought was really beautiful: Me.

 

I knew in my gut this was a moment to capture in a photo because I needed to see myself the way I truly was, not how I thought I was or who I thought I looked like in my mind. I’m engaged in a fitness and health journey that’s now six years in the making and over that time I’ve seen my body change, get stronger, and get leaner. But sometimes I still see the girl who was very much overweight and unhealthy. Photos gently remind me that girl isn’t here anymore.

I pulled out my phone, snapped a shot and did what all social media enthusiasts do: I posted it on my Instagram, Twitter and Facebook accounts. Stellar social media woman I am.

In life we have the gift of living as our true authentic and beautiful selves. Living means we show up to our lives and we commit to being in them all the way.

Being true means we see the beauty in us and the deficits. We choose to grow and pursue healing and freedom so we can get the most mileage out of these bodies, these gifts and these snazzy personalities that have intentionally been placed in us.

Being authentic means we don’t hide. We don’t hide from who we are. We don’t hide from who we used to be. We choose to be real over being fake and we choose to live instead of almost living. We invite people into the gift of who we are authentically, intentionally and honestly so that incredible friendships and relationships can blossom out of us.

Being beautiful means we see ourselves for ourselves. Who we are right now, this minute, right here. Beauty isn’t perfection or the lack a little jiggle here and there. Beauty starts in the innermost, deepest parts of who we are and infiltrates out through our eyes, smiles, laughter, voices, personalities and so much more until the inner weaves itself indelibly to the outer.

The world often says the outer parts of people are beautiful. I believe that outer starts with the inner. That’s where the true roots for beauty lie, in the soul.

How do you see yourself?

How do you feel about living authentically?

What’s in your soul? Does beauty have a home there? 

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Tumblr
  • Skype
  • Print

Related

«
»

Filed Under: Living | Tagged With: beauty, living, self awareness

Comments

  1. daylerogers says

    March 23, 2015 at 12:07 pm

    You’ve captured with humor and wisdom the essential heart of every woman who wants to know she’s beautiful. We can’t look just on the outside–although, as you’ve stated, that needs to be appreciated. Thanks for this gentle nudge towards truth and real beauty.

    Reply
    • Melody Copenny says

      March 23, 2015 at 12:20 pm

      Really appreciate your words Dayle.

      Reply
  2. bonnie says

    March 23, 2015 at 2:45 pm

    Love that you took a selfie! You’ve mentioned before that you don’t take many. You look great. I sometimes struggle to look past my imperfections, but I’m practicing the art of self-compassion and finding beauty in those supposed flaws that sometimes I only see 🙂 Thanks again for an awesome unveiling of you!

    Reply
    • Melody Copenny says

      March 27, 2015 at 5:37 am

      Bon, I love your words, “practicing the art of self-compassion” that’s just beautiful. Keep doing this girl!

      Reply
  3. Alice Fredricks says

    March 24, 2015 at 11:13 am

    I saw a beautiful “you” when l first met you, Mel, and not just outwardly, but “an fading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit which is of great worth in God’s sight.” So glad I met you!!

    Reply
    • Melody Copenny says

      March 27, 2015 at 5:36 am

      Thank you Alice. So very glad I met you too.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Welcome to my blog! Thank you for joining me on this journey of Losing, Grieving, Mourning, Loving and Living. To learn more about me, visit my bio page and click here!

  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Subscribe

Sign Up Below To Receive Blog Updates In Your Inbox!

Hot Topics

acceptance beauty black culture blessings church community culture disappointment discovery empathy family fighting God grandmothers grief growing healing health history hope human laughter learning living loss melodie melodie quotes mourning music pain people perspective poetry questions relationships relationship with God rest seasons self awareness struggle suffering the beautiful intersection truth violence writing

Recent Posts

  • Keep Building Resilience Introverts
  • Seasons
  • Christmas Reflections
  • Thriving In The Midst of The Pandemic
  • Where Do Your Words Need To Be?

Categories

Pages

  • About
  • Bio
  • Blog
  • Books & Such
  • Contact Mel
  • Finding Me
  • For The Fatherless
  • Home
  • The Grievers

Tags & Such

acceptance beauty black culture blessings church community culture disappointment discovery empathy family fighting God grandmothers grief growing healing health history hope human laughter learning living loss melodie melodie quotes mourning music pain people perspective poetry questions relationships relationship with God rest seasons self awareness struggle suffering the beautiful intersection truth violence writing

Social

  • View FindingMelodie’s profile on Twitter
  • View findingmelodie’s profile on Instagram
  • View melodylatrice’s profile on Pinterest

What I Know To Be True

Just when you find that sweet spot in life, that comfortable place, that uncanny familiar, change comes in like a flaming bat out of hell and whirlwinds all your comfortable up. If you’re limited in your thinking you’ll fight it every way you can. But, if you’re ready to grow, you’ll embrace change like a new love and let it lead you to growth you could never dream of but always sensed you desperately needed.

What Do You Need to Find?

Twitterland

Tweets by @FindingMelodie

Conversations & Such

  • Beginnings
  • Being Human
  • Creative Me
  • Dating
  • Family
  • God
  • Grieving
  • History
  • Living
  • Losing
  • Loving
  • Melodie Quotes
  • Mourning
  • Randomnes
  • Relationships
  • Those Moments
  • Transitions

Copyright © 2021 · Finding Melodie · Design by Anjelica Dezel