Have you ever stared in a mirror and wished that you could be 5 years older? 30 lbs 
lighter? Or, just a better version of yourself? I know that I have spent many hours dreaming of a better version of me; a happier me, a smarter me, a healthier me, a successful me, etc. I use to (and still do sometimes) wish for the version of me where life is perfect. However, what I have come to realize is that before you can become the best version of yourself, you need to love the version of who you are now.
You need to embrace the current you before you can become the better version of you. How can you improve on something if you don’t accept what you already have? You can’t. You don’t add salt to food until you taste what is in front of you. After you have tasted it can you decided to add salt or not. Like with losing weight: you won’t truly see results until you love and appreciate the person you are already. After you love that person, you want that person (you) to have the best so you start to workout to be the best for you and you see results.
Embracing who you are is the prelude to becoming the best version of yourself. It was after I fell in love with who I was that I could truly see the changes I needed to make. I wasn’t making these changes for a guy, for my family, for a career or anything else; I was doing it for me. I stood in the same mirror where I wished that I was older, healthier, smarter and more successful and told myself I love me with my curves, my curls, my brain and everything else, that I love the version of me that I am looking at. Only after I did that could I decide that the person I was looking at needed to be treated better and so began the journey of becoming the best version of me.
Try embracing and loving who you are. It may not be easy but remember that you are a child of God created in His image. Everything that He made He called good so you are good. You were fearfully and wonderfully made so embrace you and love yourself. Put on your favorite outfit and stand in front of that same mirror where you said those negative things about yourself and tell yourself everything wonderful and good about you. Start loving who you are and only after you have done this can you start to become the best version of you.
Until Next time,
~Elyse
