The Days I Don’t Show Up — And Why That’s Okay

Our Beautiful Challenges
By Marie W.O.W.C.P.

There are days when I do not show up the way I planned to.

Days when I had every intention of doing more, being more, or getting things done — and then life, or my body, or my mind has something else to say.

For a long time, those days were hard for me to accept.

They felt like failures.

They felt like I was falling behind.

They felt like I was not doing enough.

But living with cerebral palsy has taught me something I am still learning to fully accept.

Not every day is meant to look the same.

There are days when I can do more.

And there are days when I need to do less.

And neither one makes me any less of who I am.

The days I do not show up as I expected are not wasted days.

There are days my body is asking for something different.

Sometimes it is rest.

Sometimes it is quiet.

Sometimes, there is space to just be without expectations.

For so long, I believed that showing up meant always pushing forward.

But now I am starting to understand that showing up can also mean listening.

Listening to what my body needs.

Listening to what my mind needs.

Listening to what my heart needs.

There is strength in that kind of awareness.

There is strength in knowing when to pause.

The world often tells us that consistency means always doing.

Always producing.

Always moving.

But real life — especially life with challenges — does not work that way.

There is a rhythm to it.

A flow.

A balance between doing and resting.

And both matter.

The days I do not show up are still part of my journey.

They are still part of my growth.

They are still part of my story.

Because those days are teaching me something important.

They are teaching me how to give myself grace.

They are teaching me how to be patient with myself.

They are teaching me that my worth is not measured by how much I accomplish in a single day.

I am still showing up.

Just in a different way.

And that is okay.

More than okay.

It is necessary.

Because learning to honor those days is part of truly taking care of myself.

And that is something I am still learning, one day at a time. 🌻

— Marie W.O.W.C.P.
Seeing the beauty between the challenges.