July 2026 Week 3

“Delight in Yourself
Stop picking on yourself, worrying if you're good enough, wondering what people will see if you let them see your heart. This is what they'll see: that you are a lovable and delightful soul, a beautiful child of God.
Be yourself and accept yourself-warts, waistline, and all. You don't have to sit up that straight, be that proper, or fear what others may see. Let your imperfections show! Share them! Love yourself anyway! Relax, and be who you are! When you do that, your life will be fun and a joyful gift to others.
People who comfortably accept who they are-both their flaws and their good points—are healing, delightful, and fun to be around.
Look at any work of nature: a canyon, a flower, a bird. A mountain or a forest trail. Where does the perfection begin and imperfection end?
It’s the combination that makes a perfect scene. So it is with you.
Relax. Lighten up. Let go of shame and fear.
The whole picture is perfect, and perfectly okay.” Melody Beattie

This week I came across these words by Melody Beattie, and they stopped me in my tracks:
"Delight in yourself. Stop picking on yourself, worrying if you're good enough, wondering what people will see if you let them see your heart... Relax. Lighten up. Let go of shame and fear. The whole picture is perfect, and perfectly okay.”

I love that phrase: delight in yourself. How often do we do that? Most of us are much better at noticing our flaws than celebrating who we already are.
Our intention this month has been, "I live from the inside out," and I have to tell you, it has been incredibly grounding for me.
This week in classes I challenged all of us to take just one action each day that came completely from our own inner knowing—not influenced by what everyone else was doing, what we thought we should do, or what would look right from the outside.
For me, that kind of intentional living only happens if I spend time connecting with myself first. A dear friend says we should do that "early and often," and I've found he's right. Before the world tells me who to be, I need a few quiet moments to remember who I already am.

Have you ever noticed someone who seems to live this way? There's an ease about them. They aren't constantly pulled by every invitation or expectation. There isn't a lot of confusion about how they spend their time and energy. They are simply present, engaged, and at peace with the choices they make. That is the kind of person I am trying to be—and the kind of energy I want to be around.
I am lucky enough to have that example right in my own home. I watch my husband effortlessly navigate commitments, social gatherings, and everyday life. He doesn't seem to get pulled in every direction or wonder if he should be somewhere else. He is simply where he is. My three adult sons are wonderful teachers for me in this way too. They live intentionally and are fully present in the choices they make.
They remind me that this way of living is possible. It isn't about having fewer demands on our time. It's about being rooted enough in ourselves that wherever we choose to be, we can be there wholeheartedly.

So here you go:
How is July going for you?
Do you feel intentional, rooted, and connected to yourself? Or do you feel a little like a pinball—bouncing from invitation to obligation, from expectation to expectation, reacting instead of choosing?
As you do the yoga class or the meditation this week, let the practice be a chance to listen inward, to soften the voice of self-criticism, and maybe—even for a few breaths—to delight in yourself exactly as you are.

Let living from the inside out simply become who you are.