From the author of Start Where You Are comes an illustrated guide for moving through life’s biggest transitions with purpose and clarity.
How It Feels to Find Yourself pairs vibrant color palettes with thoughtful observations and guidance for navigating the most important relationship in our lives: the one we have with ourselves. Through illustrated charts, honest essays, and insightful questions for deeper reflection, Meera Lee Patel encourages us to sharpen our internal compasses—so we can discover our purpose, let go of what we’ve outgrown, and navigate challenging relationships with confidence. How It Feels to Find Yourself provides comfort for the difficult moments in life while serving as a source for deeper learning. It is a valuable gift for anyone who is facing uncertainty or entering a new chapter in life. Each page creates nostalgia for the places and experiences we’ve already encountered, while shining a hopeful light toward where we are headed next.
When You Become Whole on Your Own
I spent most of my twenties waiting for someone else to put me together: to tell me I was good enough, to make me less afraid, to teach me what I should value most. I weighed other people’s opinions more than my own due to insecurity and a lack of self-trust, which meant the decisions I made were based on someone else’s ideas of who I should be. What I most longed for was a sense of wholeness, but I looked for it in the wrong place: somewhere outside myself. My life began coming together when I realized that the only person responsible for my happiness . . . is me. I stopped waiting for someone else to give me permission and began living the life I wanted. I traveled alone because I wanted to see the world. I painted because I felt there was an artist inside me. I reached out to strangers and asked if they wanted to spend time together. I nurtured these new connections and received the gift of incredible friendship in return. I said yes to opportunities that scared me and became more confident each time I accomplished something I never thought I would. Becoming whole is an ongoing process—something you will achieve only to find that once again, it’s all come undone. Life stretches to accommodate your vision of it, and what I dreamt of was a life bursting with a variety of experiences and environments. My life now reflects the one I dreamt of: not one without failure or sadness, but one that has a sense of fullness— because there is meaning stitched through every experience.
"How It Feels To Find Yourself is the book that we all need on our nightstands. It reminds us that regardless of the day we've experienced; we are still beautifully and devastatingly hopeful and human. Meera Lee Patel's colorful artwork illustrates the expansiveness of our feelings and her stunning words remind us that life is a spectrum of many emotions; comfort, discomfort, acceptance, loneliness, love, enthusiasm and open-heartedness, too. And though that spectrum may not always be convenient, it undoubtedly leads us to the truest versions of ourselves. This book is a beautiful gift to all of us." —Cyndie Spiegel, bestselling author of A Year of Positive Thinking and Microjoys: Finding Hope (Especially) When Life Is Not Okay
"In addition to the stunning watercolor illustrations in this book, Patel beautifully breaks down each section into clear themes related to navigating change…. If you or someone you know is entering a new life chapter and feeling daunted by it, this book is a solid companion.” —theSkimm
From the author of Start Where You Are comes an illustrated guide for moving through life’s biggest transitions with purpose and clarity.
How It Feels to Find Yourself pairs vibrant color palettes with thoughtful observations and guidance for navigating the most important relationship in our lives: the one we have with ourselves. Through illustrated charts, honest essays, and insightful questions for deeper reflection, Meera Lee Patel encourages us to sharpen our internal compasses—so we can discover our purpose, let go of what we’ve outgrown, and navigate challenging relationships with confidence. How It Feels to Find Yourself provides comfort for the difficult moments in life while serving as a source for deeper learning. It is a valuable gift for anyone who is facing uncertainty or entering a new chapter in life. Each page creates nostalgia for the places and experiences we’ve already encountered, while shining a hopeful light toward where we are headed next.
Excerpt
When You Become Whole on Your Own
I spent most of my twenties waiting for someone else to put me together: to tell me I was good enough, to make me less afraid, to teach me what I should value most. I weighed other people’s opinions more than my own due to insecurity and a lack of self-trust, which meant the decisions I made were based on someone else’s ideas of who I should be. What I most longed for was a sense of wholeness, but I looked for it in the wrong place: somewhere outside myself. My life began coming together when I realized that the only person responsible for my happiness . . . is me. I stopped waiting for someone else to give me permission and began living the life I wanted. I traveled alone because I wanted to see the world. I painted because I felt there was an artist inside me. I reached out to strangers and asked if they wanted to spend time together. I nurtured these new connections and received the gift of incredible friendship in return. I said yes to opportunities that scared me and became more confident each time I accomplished something I never thought I would. Becoming whole is an ongoing process—something you will achieve only to find that once again, it’s all come undone. Life stretches to accommodate your vision of it, and what I dreamt of was a life bursting with a variety of experiences and environments. My life now reflects the one I dreamt of: not one without failure or sadness, but one that has a sense of fullness— because there is meaning stitched through every experience.
"How It Feels To Find Yourself is the book that we all need on our nightstands. It reminds us that regardless of the day we've experienced; we are still beautifully and devastatingly hopeful and human. Meera Lee Patel's colorful artwork illustrates the expansiveness of our feelings and her stunning words remind us that life is a spectrum of many emotions; comfort, discomfort, acceptance, loneliness, love, enthusiasm and open-heartedness, too. And though that spectrum may not always be convenient, it undoubtedly leads us to the truest versions of ourselves. This book is a beautiful gift to all of us." —Cyndie Spiegel, bestselling author of A Year of Positive Thinking and Microjoys: Finding Hope (Especially) When Life Is Not Okay
"In addition to the stunning watercolor illustrations in this book, Patel beautifully breaks down each section into clear themes related to navigating change…. If you or someone you know is entering a new life chapter and feeling daunted by it, this book is a solid companion.” —theSkimm
