Happy Monday Friends! Its a cloudy morning here and while sipping on my matcha latte I have been reflecting on this idea of taking up space. Have you heard of it? It is a relatively new idea for me and one I heard from one of my favorite youtubers Morgan Long. If you don’t know what it is to give you the gist it means being all of who you are and not diminishing that to fit into societies ideals, another persons, work environment etc. To me it means to not shrink yourself and not be fully who you are just to please others and make others feel like you aren’t “too much”.
I wanted to write about this today in my over lattes series because it is something I have struggled with. As a chronic people pleaser, enneagram 2, and someone who loves to take of others and always make them feel comfortable and loved it is quite easy to slip into not taking up space. But it’s been on my heart alot lately that I do this too often. I get scared of people thinking I am being too much or too x,y, or z etc. That they won’t like me if I fully take up space and be who I am. If you are also like me don’t worry you don’t have to stay that way and neither do I.
By not taking up space, we are sacrificing and constricting the potential of our life too much and we also aren’t giving people the opportunity to love all of us and the person we are when we are fully ourselves. I know it’s corny to say trust me but we get this one life and I know I can’t keep letting myself slip into not being fully who I am just out of fear. Not everyone will like the “full version or taking up space version” of me but there also will be others that DO and they will for you too. It can be scary to trust in that, I really feel it but there’s a quote that I love which loosely says one day the pain of trying to still fit into a place you’ve outgrown will become too heavy to continue to carry and that will outweigh the fear of moving forward.
This quote has always hit home for me but during this season of my life it something that keeps flooding my mind and heart. I am learning each day how to set down that pain of being anything other than the most authentic me and leaning into taking up space. I can’t encourage you enough to also do this if you struggle with shrinking yourself for the benefit of others. It’s okay to have and love the passions you have even if they are different than what others think are cool. I really believe that by being all that you are you will attract what is meant for you. So take up space friends. Be you and all of you. This is space for everyone here in this world remember that.
-M
Whimsy & Willow 