As I’ve gotten older, grayer, and, arguably, wiser, I’ve come to understand that the things that drive me to live out of balance, de-prioritize my own life and well-being, are more often internal drivers that misread the world and make me think that I can only be worthy of love if, ironically, I deplete myself so much that I disappear (or, worse, end up wanting to disappear). The answer is simple (but hard): Say no. Say no to even the most fearful parts of ourselves that say, ‘my success depends on my killing myself.’ That’s a lie which, thankfully, I have outgrown.
-- Jerry Colonna
