You’re Doing Just Fine, You’re Only Human After All

We’re so tough on ourselves.

For some reason we think there’s this map, this set of guidelines, this rulebook that we’re supposed to follow to achieve the ‘good life,’ the life we’re supposed to have, maybe even the life of our dreams.

So we push forward and we self-impose these goals on ourselves, whatever they are—whether money or education, jobs or travel, family or social success—and say, ‘okay, I need to get there.’

And we pursue relentlessly, all the while forgetting how far we’ve come and all that we’ve accomplished along the way.

It’s beautiful to have goals. So wonderful to see our lives paved out in front of us, even with the crooked paths and winding turns and still believe in what we want, so fiercely, that those twists ahead aren’t so frightening.

It’s smart to envision where want to be and pursue it, with drive, with a sense of fearlessness.

But we can’t forget about where we are right now.

We can’t forget about the current success, the present moment, the happiness we’ve achieved, the powerful lessons we’ve learned, the amazing people we’ve met and surrounded ourselves with, and the world of things we’ve already accomplished.

Listen: You are alive. You are breathing. You have pushed through another day.

That is a feat within itself.

And one you never give yourself credit for.

How many times have you picked yourself off the ground, dusted off your dirty clothes, and began again? How many days have you continued forward, even when you thought you’d reached the end? How many moments did you want to give up, call it quits, throw in the towel on your dreams and maybe even on your life?

But you didn’t.

Whether big or small, you got yourself through every obstacle, every change, every roadblock, and every fear.

You made it right here. And you know what? Here is enough.

All too often we only see our goals out in front of us. The places we need to go, where we need to be next, what’s coming.

But what about the right here? The right now? The place we’ve made it to.

That’s an accomplishment.

Don’t ever stop pursuing. Don’t ever stop chasing. Don’t ever give up.

But take a second to remind yourself how wonderful you are; be proud of how far you’ve come. You’re doing just fine. You’re only human after all.

Marisa Donnelly is a poet and author of the book, Somewhere on a Highway, available here.