How are you filling your own cup?

Today's quest is a topic close to my heart as a person who went through a burnout that left me feeling depleted and led me to question the meaning of life, which on the bright side, was the beginning of my quest of what aliveness is to me. Leading me to connect and look within myself.

The cup can represent any of our resources, such as your time, money, or energy. How are you filling up your cups? Knowing how to measure our own cups is essential, for they hold the capacity for us to share with others.

At this moment, are you giving from a full cup or less than half?

When our cup is full and runneth over, we share from a place of abundance and love with the confidence and assurance that we have more than enough for ourselves. We can give to others more unconditionally as our survival and basic needs are not dependent on the amount of reciprocation. When it is unconditional, it makes reciprocation flexible. The recipient can reciprocate at their own time and in their own ways, from places they feel abundant. The flexibility creates space for transformation and spontaneity for all parties.

We give apples to someone and may receive sweet oranges for us to enjoy and appreciate when he or she harvests its fruits. :)

However, when our cup has little, our survival or basic needs may be compromised, which inevitably makes giving more conditional as our survival may be determined by the amount of reciprocation. It can become somewhat transactional. When we share what little we have, we may be sharing with many conditions and feelings of negativity, which may be unhealthy to both ourselves and the recipient.

It is our responsibility and self-awareness to know how much we can give without depleting our basic survival needs to function healthily and optimally (physically, mentally and emotionally). Nobody knows us better than we know ourselves, our capacity and what fills our cup. Self-awareness will help us understand what is optimal for us and alert us when it's time to conserve and focus on filling our cups. When we need to rebalance giving and conserving our resources, we must have the courage to communicate our needs and do so with respect and love to others and ourselves.

As much as we all wish to give and keep giving, it is also important to give mindfully and intentionally. I hope my giving has a healthy impact in the long run and is not detrimental to others or myself. I wish that the giving is not from a place of self-gratification but from becoming aware of my abundance and that I have enough to share with others. When we give from a place of abundance, we can empower the recipient with our intention of space, time, and love for them. Which could be more transformative than transactional.

Let's dedicate time to regularly fill our own cups in ways we know how. It is caring for ourselves and respecting our recourses and limits. As cliche as this may sound, we can't give from an empty cup. And when we know how to fill our cups, we have the confidence to share because we know how to fill them back up!