The Pledge

What follows is an excerpt of what my good soul guru the Grady Doctor (that's her in all her awesomeness in the picture) had to say yesterday on the subject of hateful self-talk. At least two other blogs have already reposted her pledge, which I think makes this a movement. It should be a movement. Read on and join in. You don't have to be perfect. You just have to intend. Because don't we tired of having to shore ourselves up after tearing ourselves down? So I'm going to take this pledge, and when the harsh self-talk creeps in (as it might, because after all, I've been honing that skill for some time now) I will just do like the yogis and show it the door. Sometimes I might need to write that thought right out of my head, and I reserve the right to do that. What I'm aiming for here is not perfection, but heightened consciousness and the chance to practice being kind—including to me. For the whole deal, go right to the source.

From the Grady Doc:

There are scores and scores of us who have targeted ourselves for our most consistent insults. Almost like we have this need to preemptively strike against ourselves before someone else can. And to that I say Eeeeeeeehhhhnnnnnn! (*buzzer sound*) So as of today, I declare the rest of this month "No Hating on Myself Month." Here's how it will work, quite simple actually. The rules are that you can't say anything negative about yourself for the next two weeks. In other words, for the rest of August, you make a pledge to leave all hating to the professionals. Remember, they're much better at it.

The Pledge 

Place your right hand over your hip 
and let your backbone slip

I do solemnly pledge to allow no insults directed toward or about myself to leave my lips for the rest of the month. This includes but is not limited to references about the following:

butt size

hair length

baby weight

belly circumference

skin surface

crows' feet

height

complexion

salary

material possessions

marital status

relationship status

grades of any sort

comparisons to someone else

achievements of your children

size of your house

make of your car

mistakes from your past

compliments to others with reflexive insults to yourself
in same breath

Play Jill Scott's "Hate on Me" anthem and
shake what your mama gave you if you commit.

Dear Grady Doc, 
I commit.