The Courage to Rise
Rising
Again and again, we rise from the ashes of our lessons, not carrying the smoke—but the light.
This is the rhythm of life.
To choose growth.
To allow the weight of mistakes, shortcomings, and “not enoughness” to fall away, making space for something new.
Fear, doubt, disappointment, even shame;
seen,
given grace,
released.
How many of us recognize a cycle of familiar lessons that comes each time from a different perspective?
This season, my teachers are simple:
Honesty.
Humility.
Gratitude.
Honesty shines light on the soil I’ve been trying to grow in—and reveals what doesn’t sustain.
I am not enough.
They are not enough.
I’ve disappointed them.
They’ve disappointed me.
I am impatient, frustrated.
I have failed.
They have failed.
In that cycle, nothing thrives.
So I see the truth, grateful for the clarity it brings.
It’s all that matters.
My heart is bare, raw, vulnerable here,
but honest.
And this is where rising begins.
Because honesty reveals the deeper lesson:
In my rush to build more, faster—
to reach goals that felt necessary for survival—
I abandoned my truest power.
In striving and fear, I met resistance;
I couldn’t keep up with the expectations I created.
So I begin again… with fresh eyes.
And I wonder—who wants to join me?
To begin again, together?
To sister one another in a shared desire to be new?
Let’s walk on from our own “not enoughness”—and from others’.
Let’s name the disappointment, frustration, and doubt that quietly shape us.
With humility, I gather what is—purpose, inspiration, clarity—
and begin again.
The effort, the fear, the striving:
they were not wasted.
They’ve become hard-earned wisdom, ready to support something new.
And finally, gratitude—
gratitude becomes the daily practice that sustains us.
Thank you, Love, for knowing, guiding, and protecting my very being;
for holding me in grace;
for unwavering presence and power;
for the beautiful life you unfold for me.
I am inspired when I listen without agenda.
I am not alone, surrounded by care, collaboration, and love that forgives.
I am steady, clear, creative, purposeful.
I am calm, trusting, patient, kind.
I am capable and impactful.
I am compassionate, open, and responsive.
I am grateful—and ready.
I am blessed.
And when these feel too good for me, or hard to accept, I say them again and again, until they feel natural and right in my heart—because they are.
Stripped back,
renewed,
open to the light,
I am no longer reaching to become.
I am grounded in who I already am.
I choose, again, to invest in what gives life.
We renew ourselves daily—in thought,
through quiet awareness,
through noticing what no longer serves, and releasing it.
Each of us carries something distinct—
our way of being that is already more than enough.
When it’s acknowledged, supported, and given space,
it unfolds naturally, effortlessly.
And maybe that’s all rising asks of us:
not human perfection,
not relentless effort,
not even certainty, which becomes rigid,
but the willingness to begin again:
with honesty,
with humility,
with trust in what is still growing,
and a moment-by-moment cultivation of gratitude.
"We are not our thoughts; we are the awareness of them."
Which ones are we inviting in and tending to?
What are you ready to release—so something truer in you can rise?
I’m reminded of this wisdom:
The Guest House by Rumi
This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival:
a joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness that comes
as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice:
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.
Be grateful for whoever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.
Jennifer, the founder of Honest Heart Journeys, is a woman wholeheartedly embracing the ongoing journey of self-awareness, growth, and deep, authentic connection. She has found her calling in celebrating women’s unique gifts through shared restorative experiences.
By creating spaces where women can return to themselves, find clarity, and build healing sisterhood, Jennifer began HHJ as both a movement toward a more intuitive, collaborative world and a foundation for trusted, lifelong friendships.
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