A cake stayed frozen underneath layers and layers of industrial thickness Saran Wrap in my fridge for 4 years before we finally ate it.
I made a promise to myself the night of our first fundraiser in 2013, that one day I would unwrap what was left of it and eat in celebration of some amazing milestone that was in our future.
While so many amazing things did happen, nothing ever felt “good enough” to go through the trouble of unwrapping it, exhaling, and appreciating how far we’d come.
This went on for YEARS during which countless amazing milestones actually happened yet I couldn’t, I wouldn’t let myself celebrate…
✅ On the cover of the Denver Westword? Not good enough.
✅ Invited to the White House to screen the film? Not good enough.
✅ Winning the audience favorite in the Puerto Rican Heritage Film Festival? Not good enough.
✅ Hearing that our film is being used to teach a class on personal narrative at Harvard? No, that’s not big enough.
What was I waiting for?
To feel #goodenough to celebrate. Can you relate?
I couldn’t allow myself to celebrate because I believed I had to earn it and once there was enough, I’d allow myself that big exhale, the champagne, and of course the cake.
Because enoughness by design cannot be measured, that cake stayed frozen in my fridge for years.
Then I realized that enoughness was actually a decision. A decision that I could make (and that you can make too), to be more than enough for the places and spaces I wanted to be on.
Guess how I celebrated? Yes! We defrosted it and ate it together as a team and decided to never postpone celebrating and to always eat that darn cake!
What can you choose to celebrate today?