This is Part Four of my Colorado Mountain Pilgrimage series — a journey into grief, choice, self-worth, judgment, forgiveness, and awakening the medicine within. Each section is its own chapter. If you’re new here, start with Part One, Part Two, and Part Three to follow the story from the beginning. 

The Whisper in the Pines

At 12,000 feet, the world softens.

The noise of life → the lists, the expectations, the endless hum of “not enough” — falls quiet, replaced by the steady rhythm of my boots on the trail and the thin mountain air filling my lungs.

Each inhale and exhale became breathwork in motion...the mountain guiding me into presence with every step, reminding me that the simplest rhythm of breath carries medicine of its own.

>> I thought I had come here to prove something.

That I was strong enough.

Resilient enough.

Enough, period.

⛰️ But the mountain… ancient, patient, and unbothered by my trying to prove myself… met my questions with silence and a single truth, whispered through the sway of the Aspens:

Your worth isn’t out there sister. 

It’s in your heart!

The Illusion of Proving

For so long, I believed I had to earn my worth.

→ Through achievements 🏊‍♀️🚴‍♀️🏃🏼‍♀️.

→ Through the validation of others.

→ Through molding myself into the version of me I thought the world wanted to see.

👇🏻

But as I climbed, step after step, my breath ebbing and flowing with the altitude...I felt the mountain showing me the illusion of the weight of trying to prove my worth.

That same rhythm mirrors what I’ve learned in conscious connected breathwork: when the mind screams your “not enough,” to do XYZ, the breath becomes the anchor that leads us back to our truth.

☀️ And when the sun kissed the ridgeline, the mountain whispered back:

You are not here to prove.

You are here to embody and to walk the medicine thats already within you. 

The Mountain as Mirror

There’s something about the stillness at 12,000 elevation.

💫 The way the wind carries your desires.

💫 The way the silence reflects back everything you’ve tried to outrun.

💫 The way the earth beneath your feet holds you steady, no matter how heavy your backpack feels.

The mountain mirrored back to me what I had buried beneath years of trying to prove myself to everyone else, including myself:

That my worth is not transactional.

That my worth is not conditional.

That my worth is not something I have to earn or beg for.

It’s been inside me all along.

Three Ways I Learned to Anchor Into My Worth

1️⃣ I stopped outsourcing my value. 

When I caught myself searching for approval outside of me, I paused. Instead, I asked: What feels true to me right now? 

2️⃣ I celebrated the quiet wins. 

Every boundary honored. Every brave choice. Every moment I whispered yes to myself instead of no. Celebration builds trust, one breath at a time.

3️⃣ I practiced forgiveness. 

For the versions of me that didn’t know better. For the times I abandoned myself. Because forgiveness clears the darkness and lets your energy return home.

And through it all, I kept returning to my breath. It is the most ancient and powerful form of self sovereignty.  

My Breath as My Anchor

Focusing on my breath carried me up that mountain.

Each inhale whispered: I’m one step closer to my truth. 

Each exhale whispered: I’m one breath deeper into my soul. 

It was in those moments — when the trail grew steep — that my breath became not just survival, but sacred practice. My breath became my compass back to presence, power, and trust.

The Truth About Self-Worth

Your self-worth is non-freaking-negotiable!

It isn’t a currency to be traded. 💵

It isn’t something the world gets to hand to you or take away.

It is your birthright!!!!

Your soul’s quiet, unwavering TRUTH.

👉🏻 The mountain didn’t give me anything I didn’t already have.

It simply held up a mirror and reminded me:

✨ I was never lost.

✨ I was never broken.

✨ I’ve been whole all along.

And so have you.

Your Invitation

If you’ve been searching for your worth in the noise of the world — in titles, in relationships, in the endless lists of “shoulds” — let this be your reminder:

🌿 Your worth isn’t outside there in all the "Doing".

🫁 It’s in the quiet knowing within YOU.

🌙 Your medicine is already within you.

I brought this chapter of the pilgrimage to life in my final reel — the climb, the breath, the unraveling, and the reminder that self-worth is already yours.

➡️ [Watch My Story Here]