I promise I won’t make a habit of littering my blog with quotes from other people… I do have my own thoughts, but there are those moments when someone says something/writes something that cannot be put into words in a better way. For this reason, it’s better to give them their fair due and share their knowledge with other people.
A few years ago, one of my girlfriends, G., gave me something amazingly touching for my birthday. I had issues, as most women in their late teens/early twenties do, with self-esteem, knowing where I was going in life (who am I kidding, I still have that issue!), and being able to accept God-given tenacity and capability as something worth holding on to. She gave me a frame decorated with pictures of us and a piece of paper with a quote sitting where the picture normally would be (G. is a ridiculously creative woman, so my description of this masterpiece isn’t doing it justice). The following quote was inside of the frame:
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not serve the world.
There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do.
We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.
It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we’re liberated from our own fear,
our presence automatically liberates others.”
At the time, I found it touching, profound and fitting for the time in my life. I woke up this morning, randomly thinking about that frame and that quote and realized that at some point, perhaps I took that message to heart. I’m still in the process of making it a reality, mind you, but it’s important to persevere and push yourself to greatness. Not achieving the success that you’re capable of serves no one. You let yourself down, you let down the people who know your ability, and you let humanity down. When you let yourself be amazing and embrace that for what it is, it’s an inspiration to other people. I find myself looking up to these people who have had a profound impact through achieving their flavor of greatness and it makes me realize that their ability to achieve acts as a source of inspiration for everyone else; for all the little neophytes of amazingness roaming the world. Certainly, we should push ourselves, because who knows… one day, we might be the inspiration for others that we currently seek for ourselves.
Some of my inspirations (aside from my amazing family, of course):
Nelson Mandela: For passion, courageousness and zest for life despite life's hardships
Gregor Mendel: the father of Mendelian genetics; for thinking out-of-the-box and pushing boundaries.
Bill & Melinda Gates: Generous people that see the world for more than just themselves.
Dambisa Moyo: not for her theories, but for her ability to embrace her intelligence, wit, beauty and femininity.
Who are you inspired by?
