Monthly Edition: Trust

The ultimate foundation

“In yourself right now is all the place you've got.”
― Flannery O'Connor, Wise Blood

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Trust is an important part of any relationship. Without it, there is little confidence, intimacy, safety, or stability. There are varying levels of trust, depending on how close we are to the person and how consistent they are to their word, but it remains the foundation of every healthy relationship.

Trust is an essential element of self-connection. We have to build it within ourselves as much as we do with others. While we cannot control when or how others will show up for us, we are not helpless bystanders to our own lives. We have agency.

We can tune into, as well as tend to, the vulnerable places within us. We do this by keeping our word, following through on our promises, and meeting ourselves as we are in each moment.

Trust isn’t earned overnight. It takes time. We have to abandon the all or nothing mentality that keeps us tied to perfectionism rather than living in the grace of the human experience. We will not do this work of building self-trust flawlessly. It probably won’t be neat or tidy, but that’s not the point.

Allow yourself the permission to take the time it takes. Breakthrough follows intention and consistency. Keep showing up, over and over again. Consistency builds bridges of trust, brick by brick and step by step.

In the coming weeks, we will explore how authenticity, reliability, listening, and consistency can build stronger ties of trust in our systems. With every movement of intentional presence, we can learn to be a witness, a compassionate presence, and a reliable support to our own hearts.

We don’t do this to replace our other relationships, but to enhance all of them through grounded love and respect of humanity – as much in us as in others.

Who are the most trustworthy people in your life?

What makes them that way?

Consider how you can apply that to how you approach yourself.