Sometimes You Have to Say Yes to Yourself

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the relationship we have with ourselves. We spend so much time considering what other people need from us—our families, our work, our responsibilities—that it can be surprisingly easy to forget that we are worthy of the same care, support, and consideration we so freely give to everyone else.

Caring for ourselves is not selfish. I’m learning that it is actually the foundation for everything else. When we make peace with ourselves, listen to what we need, and allow ourselves room to grow, we have so much more to give from a place of joy rather than exhaustion.

And sometimes caring for yourself means being brave enough to say yes when life places an unexpected opportunity in front of you.

I’ve been keeping something fairly quiet for the past few months, but I think it’s finally time to share it.

At the beginning of February, I’m going to Jordan. 🇯🇴

What began as a conversation has slowly grown into something much bigger. I’ll be taking my sketchbooks and art supplies with me and experiencing Jordan through an artist’s eyes—its landscapes, architecture, history, colors, textures, craftsmanship, and, most importantly, the stories and people that give a place its heart.

There are several reasons this journey matters to me, some very personal and some creative, and I’ll share more of those as the journey unfolds. But perhaps the simplest reason is this: the opportunity is here, and I don’t want fear, uncertainty, or the habit of always putting everything else first to make me miss it.

Sometimes we wait for the perfect time to do the things that call to us. The perfect finances. The perfect schedule. The perfect circumstances. But life rarely hands us perfection. Sometimes it simply opens a door and asks whether we are willing to walk through it.

So I’m saying yes.

I don’t know exactly what this journey will become yet. I know there will be sketches. I know there will be paintings. I know there will be stories. And I have a feeling there may be something much larger waiting to emerge from all of it.

For now, I simply wanted to finally say it out loud:

I’m going to Jordan.

And this is where the journey begins.

This Week’s Reflection

Is there something life has been quietly inviting you toward that you keep putting off?

What might happen if, just this once, you allowed yourself to say yes?

You are worthy of the life you are still becoming.

You are enough. You do enough. You have enough.

Journey to Jordan: Following the Light—One Sketch at a Time.

💕💕 Ann