Allowing Ourselves to be Human: The Good, the Messy, and the Messier

A teacher of mine this week said,

“Allowing ourselves to be human is a big part of being mindful.”

EXTRA HUMAN-Y

My initial reaction? "Ugh", with a possible eye roll. I don’t know about anyone else, but I’ve been feeling extra human-y (technical term) these past few months, but this week in particular. And the truth is that I have a bit of an aversion to being human. To have fears and anxieties, be messy, fall short, make mistakes…not my fav.

I’ve joked that I think I'd rather be more of a robot sometimes. But I am not currently, nor do I *THINK* I’ll ever be a robot so accepting my humanity it is.

SOFTENING INTO THE MESSY

Luckily, mindfulness and all of its different practices soften me into the human condition and help me understand it is a condition shared by all of us.

Kristen Neff, queen of Self-Compassion, says this:

"Perhaps most importantly, having compassion for yourself means that you honor and accept your humanness. Things will not always go the way you want them to. You will encounter frustrations, losses will occur, you will make mistakes, bump up against your limitations, fall short of your ideals. This is the human condition, a reality shared by all of us. The more you open your heart to this reality instead of constantly fighting against it, the more you will be able to feel compassion for yourself and all your fellow humans in the experience of life.”

And my practices have helped and continue to help me with this open-heartedness towards myself and, as a result, my fellow humans. I have learned to have compassion for my human-ness and I’m grateful for the reminder as sometimes, I simply forget.

I have worked this week to soften into my humanity, the good, the messy, and the messier. It’s a humanity we all share, which is more clear now than ever. We are experiencing so much at a global level and, as Kristen Neff says, the more I open my heart to the reality of the human condition, rather than fighting it, the more I am able to feel compassion for myself and all of my fellow humans in this very complicated and messy time.

HOW CAN YOU ALLOW?

I shared a practice that is helping me do this softening on my IG Live this week. Whether it is through this meditation or any other ways that work for you, I hope you can take some time this week to find compassion for all of the beautiful things that make you human.