A Letter from the Soul

I wrote this letter from the perspective of my future self. This was based on an exercise from Marie Forleo’s Everything is Figureoutable. I had 15 minutes to write whatever came to mind. After waiting two weeks to reread what I wrote, I was honestly surprised.

Growing up, I had a pretty specific definition of success. A career where I managed others and wore power suits to work. A nice car. And money. Over time the definition morphed to include my own business, travel, investment properties, and ultimately, the ability to dictate my own schedule.

I’ve chosen to share my letter with you below to illustrate that when you allow yourself to write from your soul, your na’au, you’d be surprised to see that what you really want is very different from what you think you want.

January 6, 2021

My beloved Heather,

I want you to know that everything is figureoutable, even the things that seem scary, you can overcome. There is a God that loves you so immensely and He is a gracious God, so be a gracious daughter.

Your needs will always be met and if you think about it, your breath and God is TRULY all that you need to live this life on earth. Everything else is a bonus. And because you don’t NEED people, love them to a greater portion.

Your children will be ok. Continue to point them to me. They will experience pain, joy, mistakes, unwise and wise decisions. But it’s their journey, not yours. Don’t keep them from their journey even if you can see the outcome. Or scarier, even if you can’t see where they’re going.

You’ve dug and built a deep well as a family where they will know where to come for refreshment. Refreshment, not a dousing. Don’t forget to tend and maintain the well – your relationship with them.

They don’t exist FOR you.

Everything around the well – your home, your business, your things, will deteriorate quickly if the well isn’t cared for. We cannot survive without water. The nourishment from the well will fuel EVERYTHING else.

Go for your dreams!

While the kids are young, make sure you can do it near the well most of the time. As they get older, you can move farther as they will be building their own well and MAY come for advice. But if they don’t, fear not. If you spent time around the well with them, they’ll remember their favorite parts about it and incorporate those into their well.

And their future spouse. Pray for their wells so they can help your children build a strong and solid design for their children.

Amen.