My husband and I are a part of this amazing creative community. We meet once a month to have coffee and commune around a topic, learning from different creative leaders. The series is led by volunteers, including professional photographers. Each month, I scroll through the Flickr account hoping to discover a great shot for the ‘gram.

Nope. What I found this month was a candid that caused an initially visceral reaction.

I enlarged the photo and found myself picking away at every detail, adding rounds of ammunition to the self-hate firing squad.

And then I stopped. I closed my eyes. I breathed.

Our last speaker, a well-respected visual artist in the community led us through a breathing exercise. Of course, we all breathe on auto-pilot, but being intentional about inhaling and exhaling, being aware of our senses; what we’re seeing, smelling, hearing, etc. — this can bring us alive in the moment.

I made a conscious decision to look for the good in this photo.

1. I am proud of that “deer in the headlights” look, because it meant I was engaged in intentional listening to my friends.
2. I am grateful for comfortable clothes that keep me cool in the summer heat.
3. My versatile hair is the BEST. I can wear it straight or curly and it never matters how I get it cut because it grows so fast.
4. I love my tan here, knowing it’s a direct correlation to how much time I’ve spent in the sun and on the water this summer.

Diet culture has pissed me off to the point where I want to do something about it. This is a tiny start. What have you intentionally loved about yourself today?