We all have moments where it feels like we’re standing in our own way hesitating, shrinking, doubting, or waiting for the “right time” to finally choose ourselves. But the truth is this:
No one is going to live your life for you.
No one is going to hand you the confidence, the clarity, or the courage.

At some point, you have to stop watching your life from the sidelines and start participating in it with your whole chest  messy, magical, imperfect, brave.

And sometimes, the easiest way to see where you’re going is to look at who you already are. Gratitude has this way of pulling us out of our heads and right back into our hearts. It reminds us of what we’ve survived, created, nurtured, and chosen — even on the days we didn’t feel strong.

So here it is, a moment to take a breath, step out of your own way, and remember what’s already blooming in your life:

A Gratitude List for Myself

• I’m grateful for my creativity that never stops flowing.

• I’m love of animals — especially dogs.

• 2.5 years of sobriety and the strength it took to get here.

• I’m my connection to nature: the forest, the mountains, the trails.

• the landscapes that shaped me — Appalachia and the Rockies.

• the magic woven into my identity.

• I’m building community through High Spirits.

• I’m my softness that survived everything.

Why This Matters

Gratitude isn’t just a list.
It’s a mirror.

It’s a moment where you stop long enough to realize:
“Oh… I’ve actually done a lot of growing.”

And once you see the truth of your strength, it becomes much harder to keep holding yourself back. You realize you’ve already survived worse than the changes you’re scared to make. You realize your softness doesn’t make you weak but it makes you human, connected, and deeply alive.

Gratitude shows you that you’re not starting from zero.
You’re starting from experience.
From wisdom.
From intuition.
From resilience you earned.

And when you look at your life through that lens, the things you want suddenly feel possible because you finally see that you are possible.

Getting Out of Your Way Starts Here

If you want a life you’re proud of, a life that feels aligned and grounded and intentional, you have to let yourself grow past the old version of you:

• Stop shrinking to fit old rooms.

• Stop dimming to make others comfortable.

• Stop apologizing for the things that make you vibrant and alive.

• Stop convincing yourself that you’re “not ready yet.”

You don’t build a meaningful life by overthinking it to death.
You build it by showing up honestly, fully, imperfectly and letting your gratitude guide you instead of your fear.

Final Note: You Deserve a Life That Feels Like You

A life that matches your creativity.
A life that honors your sobriety.
A life that celebrates your love for animals.
A life rooted in forests, mountains, magic, and truth.
A life softened by compassion but strengthened by purpose.
A life where your community grows with you.

You already have the foundation.
You already have the heart.
You already have the story.

Now all that’s left is giving yourself permission to step into the version of you who knows she deserves all of it.

Get out of your own way because your future is waiting and stay high spirited.