You are One with Your Surroundings

How many times in our lives have we heard someone say, "you are what you eat"? I have thought about that and there is mostly truth to it. Junk in equals junk out. I feel like the same thought process behind that leads us to, "you are one with your surroundings." We will become the same as the company that we keep. It is so hard to break free from what we've become comfortable with. Therefore, we just conform. In the moments when we aren't quite feeling like ourself, I think we need to check our surroundings and see where we are. I want to surround myself with people who know more than I do. I want to surround myself with people that can find opportunity where there seems to be none, that have this zest for life. If we are surrounding ourselves with people who seem to have just stopped on their journey, then we too will eventually just stop moving forward.

Recently, I began realizing that I didn't like who I was becoming, that I didn't like what I was seeing. I made the choice in that very moment that I could not let anyone in my life keep me from what I needed to do to get back on track. As adults we are employees, friends, spouses, and parents and we give so much of ourself to so many others. In doing so, we lose track of what we need to do to take care of ourself, physically, mentally, and emotionally. If we have the right people in our lives, they will support us through whatever it is we feel like we need to accomplish. If you decide that you need to make a change for the better and the people in your life aren't willing to support you or help you, then you need to understand that you may not have the right people in your life. This is one of those moments when you need to check your surroundings and see where you are.

As we all grow older, we want to feel like our life has purpose and that we are living each day to the fullest because we begin to understand the fragility of it all. We struggle with understanding why we are here at times. We struggle with change because it's uncomfortable. We struggle with our own thoughts that sometimes hold us back. I think sometimes it's hard to take that first step toward anything new or different because we are afraid of who we might leave behind. I am sometimes guilty of worrying what other people might think if I do something different. I'm sure most of us have felt that at some point. I think mostly it's because we conform to what society views as normal and anything outside of that makes us scared.

Life is tricky. Much like our surroundings, it is ever changing. I try to remind myself not to get stuck somewhere for too long because when we aren't moving, we aren't growing. We all want a meaningful life. We have to decide what that looks like and then don't give up on ourselves. Whether it's weight loss, career changes, religion and faith or anything else, don't give up. Keep searching, keep looking for answers, and surround yourself with people you can grow with in that aspect of your life. We live in an era where we have the ability and the access to surround ourself with almost anything we want to. Podcasts, blogs, articles, local groups, so many different things that would allow us to find support for our everchanging lives and minds.

I believe, that as long as there is breathe in our lungs, we aren't finished yet. I never want to stop learning, growing, and evolving. I want to understand the purpose of my life. I want to speak up when I need to and keep quiet and listen when it's important. Listen intently and understand what the person is saying and not just hear the words they are speaking. Many of you reached out and shared your lives with me recently and I am so moved by each of you. If you only knew that we are all going through things, we are all questioning things and going down new paths. We are all more similar than any of us realize. I encourage you to check your surroundings. If you have become one with something that isn't working for you anymore, change it. We live in a great big world. There are people and opportunities out there waiting for someone like you.