Princess Charming

Another week gone and summer is almost officially here.

This week, I was inspired by a quote that was shared by a colleague recently. The funny thing is that the focus of what was shared was meant to be on a different thing, but I spotted the below and joked about the subliminal messaging and influence for this post

"A woman has to be her own Prince Charming" by Dame Shirly Conran

So, I read the above and in conjunction with a recent conversation I had with some female friends over dinner where they shared their concerns about their teenage daughters and the beginning of them dating and meeting the right guy/girl, my thoughts trailed off to how as children we are told stories about meeting Prince Charming and the perfect happy ever after; as teenagers we spend time chasing this elusive Prince Charming who will come and save us from whatever it is that we need saving from and who more times than not doesn’t even know we exist; and as adults, we at some point give up, accept our lot in life, accept that there is no Prince and that if they exist, they are busily off saving someone else. Not us.

But is that right...? I certainly hope not.

I hope, that one day we will all wake up (like I did a few years ago, following a very very difficult conversation with a friend one night during some rough times) and realise that the only person that can truly save us, is ourselves. Because whatever we need saving from is something that we alone have knowingly or unknowingly created. If we want Prince Charming to save us, we need to look no further than the closest mirror.

Who is this Prince Charming anyway? What is it about them that would be listed in the laundry list of Prince Charming traits? If we ask ourselves those questions, like I did the morning after the difficult night before, we will realise that the first person that the laundry list of Prince Charming traits should describe, is ourselves. We need to be able to look in the mirror and see that we are kind and loyal to ourselves. That we love ourselves unconditionally and don't berate ourselves every time we may make a mistake. That we value ourselves before others, and act like a person of worth instead of a doormat. That we listen to our own inner wisdom and make choices that are in line with what's best for us. That we find pleasure in the little things and are fully responsible for our own happiness. That we are fully aware of our own self worth that we stand up for ourselves; that we are our own best friend, supporter and number one cheerleader. That we freely express our own emotions to ourselves and to others and stop suppressing them to make other people happy or because we think it's "wrong" to feel a certain way. That we allow ourselves to grow as a person and that we actively try to be a better person today than maybe we were yesterday.

It is time to be our own Prince Charming! Time to be our biggest supporter and best friend or whatever else might be on our list of Prince Charming traits. Time to stop waiting for someone else to save us and deconstruct the walls of our self-made prison ourselves.

Besides, as my good friend pointed out to me that difficult night all those years ago, Prince Charming was never there when the Princess needed him. They always showed up at the end of the fairytale, after the self-sufficient Princess had already solved her own problems.

So, have a good weekend all and let’s all try to ride off into the sunset ourselves and smiling.

A true happy ever after...