The Morgan Harper Nichols Show

The future is unknown, and there are so many ways tomorrow could go. But what if, instead of worrying about all that could go wrong, you focused on the beautiful truth that: all along, you have had this moment, right here, to focus on one thing at a time, one conversation at a time, one project at a time, one hour at a time, one breath at a time? Whatever it is pushing you to think that you have to sort it all out at once, does not have a final say on how things go today. Despite all of the possibilities of how things could go terribly wrong, all along, this has been true: you have had this very moment to give energy to what's right in front of you. In the moment, you might feel like you are not doing enough, and the weight of all that you cannot solve may wear on your heart too much. And at the very same time, no matter how crowded the mind, there is rich soil beneath your feet, reminding you amidst the chaos, you are still free to sow seeds. You are free to sow seeds of faithfulness, and peace right here where you are. Trust: the wisdom your heart is longing to know will find you long and slow. Wisdom will find you through listening and through a humble lifelong commitment of choosing to be present right here where you are. Even when it seems like the world is spinning in 1000 different directions at once, tomorrow will arrive when it is meant to arrive. Give your all to being here right now. And maybe in the end, you will find that you did not have to travel somewhere far off into some yet to be known distance to sow faithful seeds. You ended up experiencing growth in unlikely ways. The soil was surprisingly rich beneath your feet. And someday, you might go on beyond this place. You might move to other things. You might leave this place behind you for brand new ways to grow. But may you never forget all you learned right here at the slow yet exacting pace. You still learned the ways of commitment and faithfulness, before it all fell into place. Don't give up just yet. Keep taking deep breaths, working in the garden, day by day, step by step. Journal: After listening to this, what is the next step you will take? How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

First things first. If you are experiencing a lack of focus, there is no shame. There is no judgment. It's okay. And it happens to everyone. Before you focus on getting your focus back, allow yourself the permission to remember that there are many factors as to why you could be losing focus. Factors that don't make you weak, or incapable if you can't figure it out right away, if you can't stay focused 100% of the day. Secondly, if you find yourself distracted, off the course, that you feel you're supposed to be traveling, just remember that that awareness, even in a space of distraction and lack of focus, is still a sign of aliveness. You're still here. You're still in this thing. Even when it feels like you have been swept away by a heavy gush of wind, there is still room within for slow and steady growth. Remember, you are still here, and there is still a way back. Number three: because there are so many factors as to why one might lose focus, there are many ways back into focus. Sometimes a lack of focus represents a lack of passion. Maybe you're no longer interested in the things that you're doing. Boredom finds you, redundancy finds you, and your mind wanders. And if you find yourself in that place, remember that sometimes life is repetitive. Life is boring. Life is dreadfully ordinary. And that's okay. We don't always have to be passionate every day. We're allowed to change course, we're allowed to change our minds, we are allowed to wonder and be curious in this life. You may have been lectured in school and made to feel as though if you lose focus, that somehow means that you're worth less, or you're not good enough. But in reality, we are all wired so differently and beautifully. And even if you sat in that classroom in that setting every single day, that person does not know you well enough to determine the unique way that you learn and find focus. There is always room to find your way back into focus again, without judgment. And finally, there is no shame in seeking help. If you need help coming back into focus, speak to someone who can help. You're allowed to seek professional help. If that's something that you need to do, you're allowed to spend time unpacking what it might mean that you're struggling with focusing with someone that you trust. We need each other and we need these conversations. We need to continually remind one another that there are many distractions and reasons and factors as to why focus might be difficult. But it does not make us weak. If it's something that we are actively working through, it does not make us weak. When we have moments where our minds wander off, or we're thinking about other things, it's okay. There is room to come back. There is room to come back at a gentle, mindful pace. How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

In a time of information overload, when you and I are daily presented with all that we do not know and need to know, may we remember to slow down and take deep breaths and remember the long, slow ways of wisdom. For knowledge without wisdom is a long bookshelf that goes on for miles and miles, filled with books that we have read from cover to cover, binds worn, pages highlighted, and yet, no action has ever been taken. Wisdom, on the other hand, is the way of slow learning - learning that propels us to move into action. And if we are ever desiring to grow, we must remember that wisdom comes slow. We can only take in so much information at a time. We can only give so many more tasks to our already overcrowded minds. In the same way that we do not expect ourselves to rush into action immediately after eating a meal, we must continue to remind ourselves and one another that we are allowed to take time to process all that we are taking in. For again and again, every single day, we will be reminded of all we have yet to know. All of the ways where we still have a long way to go. The only way to travel through this with grace is realizing that we must approach knowledge with a wise, mindful pace. It will not make us weak. If it takes time to process things this week, we are allowed to say, “I need some time,” without fearing what others might think. We are allowed to take time to breathe even in the face of uncertainty. As psycologist and Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl once said: Between stimulus and response, there is a space. And that space lies our freedom and our power to choose our response. If you don't know what to do with the space, after taking all of this information in, breathe. Simply breathe. Inhale and exhale. You do not have to say or do a single thing. This is a part of the long, slow way of wisdom, a posture of listening, that will be cultivated over the course of your lifetime. This is a journey, and you're still learning. And you're still free to take this one day at a time. Journal: If you experience information overload, what time of day does this usually occur?  What changes can you practice making? How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

May today be the day you embrace authenticity, an act of being truly honest with yourself. May you honor your capacity? Say yes when you need to say yes and say no when you need to say no. Make bold, courageous choices, knowing that even in the unknowns, no matter what the results will be, you will learn and grow either way. For far beneath the layers of worry and doubt, grace is woven throughout every aspect of your life. Grace is unmerited favor. That does not make the path easier, but it does remind you: no matter where you have been, you are free to try again. No matter the times you have been afraid to make a decision, afraid to take up space, you are free to keep going, anyway. Let your next exhale remind you to release any hint at perfection that keeps you from authenticity. And when you choose authenticity over perfection, you will start to find meaningful connections in unexpected places. Maybe you won't fit in with everyone, and you won't be invited everywhere. But you will be someone who knows in the well of their soul that even as you are redefining success in progress, you are still whole. Not always popular. Not always buzzworthy. But whole. And in the years to come, you will see what truly matters is the way you showed up with honesty, love and authenticity, saying all of the words that you truly mean to say. Not keeping the big feelings at bay, allowing yourself to be fully engaged with life as it is right now. This is the way you grow. This is the way you learn to breathe as you wait for the harvest. Love will still find you, wisdom will still find you. Freedom and sunshine will find you too. Taking time to get to know the real you will absolutely take a lifetime. But day by day, you will find who you are beneath the layers is truly worth knowing. And it is always worth it to keep growing from a place of honesty and grace. Journal: Do you think people in your generation struggle with authenticity? If so, why? How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

Just in case no one has told you lately: you are not taking up too much space. You might be too much for some, but those people will not determine who you will become. May you never allow powerful people to make you feel small. You were made to do bold things. You were meant to give your all. There will be critics and cynics, but I hope they do not silence you because you were meant to use your voice, even if it takes years to find the courage. Let this be your bold, honest choice. It is not too late for you to unlearn the lies that try to define you. It's not too late for you to acknowledge and make room to heal from those conversations from long ago. It doesn't make you weak if it still bothers you. There's still time to work through it with grace. Of course, there is such a thing as constructive criticism. And this is also true: a  lot of the noise you're hearing is coming from someone else's insecurities and fears, and it has nothing to do with you. It does not make you weak to say, yes, I have been hurt by their words. Because no matter how much you took their words to heart, it does not determine your worth. It might take time to figure out how to tell your story, where to use your voice, and what it looks like for you to be yourself in this world. But I promise you, it's worth the journey. It's worth the daily undoing of all the things you feel like you should be in exchange for a bold and brave pursuit of who you truly are beneath all the layers. No, you are not taking up too much space. You may not be perfect or enough for everyone. But there is still room for you to be who you were meant to be, unapologetically. You were made to do great things. You were meant to shine the light that is still burning within you. From the time you were born, you were made to come forth through fire light, gold and bold, honest waves. And remember: the greatness that runs within you - it can be subtle. It isn't only found under spotlights or on a stage. It is woven into the layers of your very being, no matter your story, your journey or your age. You do not have to be perfect to be whole. A bold, radiant soul wrapped in grace. You are free to be who you were meant to be, no matter what others say or think. No, you are not taking up too much space. Journal: Where in your life can you be a little bit more bold than you were yesterday? How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

Today's piece is called sonder. It is inspired by John Koenig’s definition of the word sonder, who created this word for his Dictionary of obscure sorrows. I will be reading that definition before I begin the piece. Sonder: a noun. the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own—populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness—an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you’ll never know existed, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk. When you start to feel like you will never be enough, perhaps this moment is enough to breathe, to dream. And not only for yourself or your family, but also for strangers, imagining what good things they might do 10 minutes from now, 10 years from now, imagining the very best for them. Even if you never get a close look at their faces. Take a simple mindful moment for them. Even when you feel you will never be enough, keep your heart open to love. Let whatever is right, whatever is true, be enough to carry you through when you start to feel you will never be enough. H. Jackson Brown Jr. once said: Remember that everyone you meet, is afraid of something, loves something and has lost something. It is far too easy to draw conclusions based on how little we know of someone. We catch glimpses of someone's story and without even trying, we write their ending. Imagination is powerful, and can be a great force for good. What if we imagined the best possible scenario? It is so easy to think about what could go wrong or what we can't get right. But what if we continue to remember: everyone else's story is just as complex as our own. There are people all around the world, whom we have never even come in contact with that share in our grief, our joy, and all of the moments in between. Let it be a beautiful moment when we start to realize that someone else's suffering, or even their joy is not as far away from us as we may think. And may we always keep in mind that beautiful doesn't mean perfection, niceness, or easiness. Beautiful is about wholeness, groundedness, all of the joys and sufferings being held together. Us holding together. realizing we are not alone. Journal: Think of the last person you saw. What is the kind of thing that you can say about them? How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

You never know what will happen when you let go. When you finally let go of the fear that you won't be enough, when you finally start to wonder if maybe, this season can still be meaningful, even if it's completely different than what you thought it would be. Yes, your heart will miss what was. You may find grief. You may find that you still have this anxious mind. And I hope you also find freedom. Freedom. Freedom to trust that even though letting go of what was might feel like the ultimate embodiment of emptiness and being alone, right here, you're opening up. You are being strengthened. Grace is more than enough for you here. Dare to look beyond those old fears. Say goodbye to the worries that you are not worthy, and it's too late for life to be meaningful. Let this month be the month you always remember. The month you chose to say: I never knew I had it in me. I never knew I had the strength to do this. And yet here I am. Here I am learning to come alive through the wild of letting go. Earlier this year, I thought it was over. But now, I am so grateful that I chose courage and I kept going. I may not know what tomorrow looks like. But I have found a river filled with life. I am daring to trust that I can breathe in these unknowns. I can dare to come alive. Allow yourself to be open to the very hard work of trusting you have not seen all there is to see. And there is more ahead of you. Being in these unknowns will ask a lot of you. But there is freedom within it too. To slow down and notice what's around you and how even here, light pours through. Dare to be brave today, even if it's in a small way. Find freedom in letting go. Dare to trust. There's room for courage, hope, and healing no matter what is unknown. Journal: What fear are you choosing to look beyond today? How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

In one way or another, everyone is searching for something. Everyone is searching for the rhythms and a flow, whether that's safety, security, freedom, peace -  it varies from person to person. And oftentimes, we can become so preoccupied with trying to get into our flow and pattern of life, that we forget that life is anything but predictable. We forget that no matter how much we crave what is safe and known, we have to be willing to go deeper. Whatever that looks like for us, we have to be willing to trust that even when life doesn't look like we want it to, when we make a choice to be brave by being present in whatever season we are in, we will grow. In Joan Didion 1968 collection of essays Slouching towards Bethlehem, she writes these words about leaving New York, and moving to Los Angeles after many years. She says, I was very young in New York. And at some point, the golden rhythm was broken. And I am not that young anymore. The last time I was in New York was a cold January. Many of the people I used to know there had moved. I share this bit of Didion story here because I think it is important to highlight that it is also okay, if rhythms, even the golden ones, come to an end. You are free to make peace with them. Even when you are seeing the end of them, you are free to move on even though you don't know what's ahead. There are times in life where we have to exchange golden rhythms for new ones. For some, it's leaving the city. For others, it's staying a little longer. It's hard to let go, especially when you remember what was good. Whatever letting go looks like for you right now, I just hope that you can remember that change is okay. In fact, change is more than okay. Change is an invitation, an invitation to accept that things won’t always be the same, but you can still find peace. The future is unknown, and at the same time, you will become who you were meant to be. May each of us soften our hearts to look for moments where coming alive means going beyond what is comfortable, safe, and known. May we allow ourselves to see that when we open up to the possibility of how things could change, we will grow. May we accept change as an invitation to be challenged, to be stretched, to cultivate wisdom in these new unknowns. Journal: What change are you willing to make today? How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

Whenever you start to feel the pressure to do more, and your shoulders tense up with stress, and your jaw tightens as you push your way right through your need for rest - turn your face to the nearest window, catch a glimpse of a cloud, a leaf in the wind, let everything in you soften as you notice these natural rhythms too easily forgotten. We demand so much of ourselves. We forget about the way of the trees. We forget that before flowers bloomed, they were seeds - only springing up in season, never telling us their plans or their reasons for why they grow the way they grow. And yet, when we look at them, we fully know that there is a fullness to their becoming. Unconcerned with human notions of productivity and perfection, rooted in connection, in tune with something more. Oh, how easily we forget, in our rush from one thing to the next. Despite what we have been told, we have built in rhythms of rest, and slow, beautiful progress. Slow. Slowly we grow one day at a time. We realize the wholeness of it all, and leave the pursuit of perfection behind. So when you look in the mirror, more than you focus on the imperfections and the shadows of who you wanted to be, or thought you needed to be, I hope you see a living breathing soul who is traveling courageously right here through the grit of things. This year has not been easy, and this is also true: you are a beautifully radiant example of how hope gets through. Continue to breathe right here in the middle of it all. Continue to breathe before it makes sense. Trust the imperfections will not keep you from being whole. Journal: When you were growing up, what was your relationship to the concept of perfection? How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

As hard as it is to wrap our minds around the fullness of what grace means, the beautiful thing is: we don't have to. Instead, we can look up to a sky filled with silver stars and say in this beautiful, majestic world, by grace I belong here too. We can look around and see how everyone else's lives seem to be filled with intention and forward movement, and know that our lives are filled with movement all the same. We can look at the broken pieces of our own hearts, the things that have been torn apart, and say: all by grace, I still matter. Even here, I have not been forgotten. I belong in this life just as much as anyone else. No matter how you feel today or tonight, may you know this to be true. If you happen to feel small, when you look up to the stars, I hope you know it's okay to feel that way. It's okay if you don't always feel bold or strong or great because the truth is: just like the stars, you will shine on anyway. You will matter when you are singing; you will matter when you are not. You will matter when they care, and you will matter when they don't. All together, you will matter. Under a billion silver stars, you are never too small to be great, even when you feel that way. May you find peace knowing that there will be people that never make room for you, but that does not mean there's no place for you to belong. There will be days where it is hard to engage and it's hard to stay focused and you cannot give all that you want to. But even then, those things are not a strike against you. You have not been restricted from waking up tomorrow morning and giving it another try. Every day, you have the opportunity to belong, and learn what it means to belong, over and over again. To trust that even when your circle of friends start to change and even when you move to a new city or you find yourself battling an unexplainable sense of loneliness, you are still worthy of belonging. Even if belonging looks different in this season. Even if belonging is the feeling you get when you turn your face to the midnight sky, and the stars remind you that you are free to shine. There are other people out there. There is room for new chapters to be written. There are connections waiting to be ignited that you have yet to see. Trust and believe you are free to shine on anyway. Journal: How can you live the rest of this day more intentionally? How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

Seasons don't change drastically overnight. They overlap. There are moments of spring that feel like winter, moments of autumn that feel like summer. When the seasons change on the calendar, you might still be wearing clothes from the previous one. It may take a few days or weeks before things start to feel like the new season. Remember this when it comes to the seasons changing within your own life. If you have a new opportunity, it's okay if it takes time to settle into it. If you are in the season of transition, it's okay to feel an overlap with your emotions. Sometimes, the leaves turn yellow and fall to the ground while it's still warm outside. Other times it already feels like winter before they change. Allow yourself room to embrace the overlap. Embrace the seasons that don't have hard starts and stops. Even though the days on the calendar are divided into these little squares. In reality, the days actually bleed into one another. When midnight strikes, it's technically a new day. But for most places in the world, it's still dark outside. It takes several hours before the sun fills the sky with light. There's no hard start for a sunrise; it slowly fades onto the horizon line. And even within the same season, it doesn't rise at the exact time every day. So trust that so many things in life change this way. You don't have to experience drastic immediate shifts every day, to know that you are experiencing real and meaningful change. Breathe and let the season be what it needs to be. Journal: Describe the season you're in as one of nature's seasons. Does it feel like spring, winter, summer or fall? How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

Life can be fulfilling at age sixteen and also sixty. Twenty five and thirty five. Joy is timeless. No matter what's missing, you can make the most of where you are today. Of course, you will always be able to sit and wonder about things that could have gone differently. But you can also trust in this present moment that you have not missed out on what was meant for you. I know it's hard to trust when there's so much unknown. But instead of trying to make it all make sense at once, you are free to take this experience called life - color by color, tree by tree, scent by scent, relationship by relationship. You don't have to take it all in at once. Take in the newness of it all, one moment at a time, without worrying about the moments to come. And let that be enough. Breathe deep. And let this moment be enough. Let this be a place where you find peace. Exchange your overthinking for overwhelming peace that says I will be okay without knowing everything. I will still be worthy of love if I can't fix everything. I can still have a meaningful life if I'm not where I thought I'd be. Grace will still find me. Love will still find me. I can still have hope for tomorrow, despite my uncertainty. I will keep going anyway. And not trying to conquer the world. But taking it day by day, hour by hour, breath by breath. Knowing that every exhale is a sign of strength. I can be okay without knowing everything. Where you are meant to be, you will be in time. You might have to say goodbye to certain people, certain things, a certain place or certain idea of how you thought things would be. But there will still be open space to welcome new beginnings. There will still be room for you to trust and believe that you'll find love and belonging. Remember the ground beneath your feet. Remember, you belong here. No one has taken your place. You are not too far from grace. Your story might be unfolding differently than how you expected it would. But you are still being directed. Where you are meant to be, you will be in time, no matter your age or stage of life. Journal: Where is the number one place in your life where you feel like you belong? How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

No matter the connections that have been lost over the past few months or years, there is still room for new connections. Perhaps you have seen your community change. Maybe you have seen your group of friends begin to go their separate ways. Maybe you thought you found the one you would spend the rest of your life with, only to not have things work out. Even if you have had to move to a different city or a new job, the weight of a lost connection can leave you feeling isolated, forgotten, and even rejected. And the thing is: there will never be anything else like what you had. You will never meet another person who is exactly like the person you felt so connected to. But you are allowed to grieve what was, while also having hope that just because the beautiful parts of the past cannot be repeated or replaced, that does not mean you cannot have a beautiful future that will be meaningful and special in its own way. You might not bond with this new person in the same way you did with someone else. But that friendship can still be beautiful. You might not feel the same familiarity in this new city that you felt in your last city. But you can still have a meaningful, adventurous life right here. You might not see how anything could ever compare to that night, that conversation, that relationship, or that season of life. But you can still find connections here in the present moment. Yes, the present moment will look different from the past. But perhaps that can be a beautiful thing. It is okay to say I miss what was while anticipating what is to come. You can acknowledge the good and the valuable lessons that came out of the past without dwelling on the past. You can open your heart to let someone in without thinking that it will be exactly like it was before. Not all people are the same. Not all cities are the same. Not all seasons of life are the same. You are not the same. You have grown and you are changing. And you are allowed to experience beauty, love, goodness, and connection, no matter what yesterday looked like for you. Take heart, breathe deep. Allow yourself to say things will be different. And I will be okay. Journal: How can you become the kind of person you long to connect with? How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co How to connect on social media: Instagram Instagram.com/morganharpernichols Twitter: twitter.com/morganhnichols Pinterest: pinterest.com/morganharpernichols YouTube: youtube.com/morganharpernichols TikTok: tiktok.com/@morganharpernichols Facebook: facebook.com/morganharpernichols --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message

What if your story was not only about staying on top of things, but about getting to the bottom of things? What if you actually needed unforced rhythms and slower paces to truly live through this season in a way that helped you grow? What if there are stories inside of you that are waiting to be shared? Thoughts and ideas stirring inside of you, that can only be cultivated when you're not in a rush? When we think of expressing ourselves or sharing our stories, it's normal to think of social media or sharing with a crowd of people. But this is only one kind of sharing. The stories we tell ourselves about ourselves matter too. The way we talk about our childhood, or our frustrations, or the root of our joys is much more than small talk. Human beings need stories. And yet, it's far too easy to get wrapped up in everyone else's. The stories we see on our social media feeds, the stories of our siblings or friends. Who’s further along, who's more interesting, who actually has a story worth telling? In the rush of life, it's hard to see our stories for what they actually are: a never ending circle, filled with depth, life, fullness, mystery, hope, wisdom, strength, grace, resilience, and the rush of life. Sometimes it seems like our stories are nothing more than well, I was born here, then this happened, and I went to this school, and then I was in this relationship. But oh, our stories are so much more, more than can ever be put into words. Our stories are filled with emotion. Think of a movie you've recently watched, reflect on how the characters invited you into their experiences, not from the plot summary, but through what they were feeling. Even if your life looks completely different than the characters, you felt a connection to their story. Of course, you can't see your life objectively in this way. But you're free to use your imagination - imagination that allows you to look at this season of your life, the emotions that you're currently experiencing, as if they were played out on screen. And perhaps then, you will find that no matter how boring or ordinary, it seems in the everyday, they're still feeling there. There is still a beating heart at the core. You will find that there was grit, and there was also grace. It doesn't always feel like it in the moment. Resilience is woven through your story. Even the parts of your story that aren't inspirational or easily understood. Even the parts of your story that don't seem relatable or good. Remember that the resilience in your story is found in your stories roundedness - the wholeness of it all. And yes, there are moments and maybe even entire seasons where you feel weak, incapable, and too small. And somehow through it all, you have continued to rise up, day after day after day, proving that all by grace, you have been able to go into the grit of it all and come out, stronger, wiser, more equipped to continue to become who you were meant to be. You are resilient, even if it takes some time to see. Journal: What are the first three words that come to mind when you think of your story? How to support this podcast: Leave a review in the Apple Podcasts App! Download my app "Storyteller" for daily messages, wallpapers, and FREE push notifications: http://onelink.to/stapp My shop: http://garden24.co --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/morganharpernichols/message