One of the tenets of the Toltec tradition, “spiritual warriors” indigenous to the Aztec Empire (my dear Mexico, country of my heritage!) and as passed on through Don Miguel Ruiz in The Four Agreements (10/10, or 4/4 recommend reading) is: Always do your best.
And our best is not absolute. It is not a fixed point of perfection, existing in a vacuum without condition. We are different in every moment, and it’s so important we honor that.
I’ve come to define my best in not just what I’m able to give, produce, squeeze and twist and wring out of myself at all costs. It’s about the quality in which I do something (joy, compassion, service), and how I feel as a result. How does it leave me? How are others left?
I’ve found this reminder so nurturing as I’ve tried to gently move myself away from the 24-hour expectation cycle so much society operates on. Sleep, awake, work and do, exactly the same, actually it better be better, again and again. As I’ve learned more, especially, about cycle syncing and monthly hormonal fluctuations for women (is it a coincidence's a woman’s cycle is ~28 days and so is the moon’s?) and attuned myself more to the seasons than the calendar months. What is being offered in this time? Who am I in this moment? What feels best, and is best, and how can I “do” my best?
Our “best” is always different. And that is for the best. Our best.