A First-Rate Version

My Challenge Today:

A first-rate version …

By Bernadette Kathryn, LMT, IHLC

Always be a first-rate version of yourself,

instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.

~ Judy Garland

How can I be a first-rate version of myself today, one day at a time. I want to make the most of this day and be the best I can be. I have to admit, some days are easier than others, what do you think? The goal is to be who I am and carry myself with confidence ~ confidence is sexy and attractive ~ and who doesn’t want to be attractive? I know that having confidence in myself is key to living a happier, healthier life.

I don’t always have the confidence that I would like and I have to do some work to pump myself up for the day. I have found that spending quiet time with myself each day is an important strategy when it comes to developing and maintaining confidence. Many years ago I found a book by Louise Hay ~ Heal Your Body ~ and I was fascinated with the idea of healing my body, so I bought it. Louise was a pioneer in the self-help industry, she led workshops, wrote books and committed her life to bettering ours and I absolutely benefitted. I poured over the book and became very familiar with the concept of affirmations. As I read and studied, it was obvious to me that I could truly change my body, health and life by embracing a much needed attitude adjustment and practicing positive affirmations. When I read the metaphysical causations of common health issues it was like reading my mind, I was hooked.

It didn’t take long for me to realize if I would allow myself to tell the absolute truth about my inner chatter, I would learn more about myself and how I manifest my own illnesses and personal challenges. Now, please don’t get me wrong, this was not a simple exercise, no quick fix. However, I was fully engrossed in this new concept and I devoured the book, many times over. I wanted to be the best I can be, a first-rate version of myself and I knew in my heart that only I could make it happen. It was and is completely up to me to make my life whatever it is going to be and I believe that being healthy is key to being a first-rate version of myself. I did not want to grow into a life of health issues and I knew if I followed my childhood path, that is exactly what I would get.

So began my life of conscious transformation and affirmations. I strongly believe that we develop our own personal operating system in life by the experiences that we encounter at home with our families and during our formative years at school. Ultimately we do have a choice about keeping that operating system or not. I believe that as we evolve into the people that we are, we have the opportunity to choose our path, break away from the patterns that we grow up with. Again, it’s really not that black and white, it’s not a simple subject and yet we do have choice in our lives and it’s our duty to choose wisely.

• I choose friends that love, appreciate and support me
• I choose work that I love doing
• I choose to live a life of fun, adventure and pleasure
• I choose to live a life of learning, growing and changing
• I choose to do work with people that appreciate and respect me
• I choose to be the best me that I can on any given day