Inner
Assurance
“Life is
not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance
and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are
gifted for something, and that this thing, at whatever cost, must be
attained.”
Marie
Currie
The first lines of
The Dhammapada: The Sayings of the Buddha read: “We are
what we think. All that we are arises from our thoughts. With our
thoughts we make the world.” Nowhere is this more obvious than
in our opinion of ourselves. What am I here for? What is the meaning
of my life? What are my gifts, and how do I offer them? These are big
questions, necessary questions. Some of us focus on our deficits,
those things we cannot do, or for which we have no aptitude. We groan
over even little flaws. And some of us are so overblown in what we
think of ourselves that we can think of little else. The trick is to
come to a settling place somewhere in the middle.
Being realistic is
necessary. I, for instance, am truly bad at math. I will never be a
chemist or an engineer, and honestly, I have no interest in those
pursuits. But, I don't need to condemn myself to the dark chambers of
ignorance for being truly bad at math. I can focus instead on what I
am good at. On the other hand, it would be silly and distasteful for
me to continuously brag about the things that I do well—also, it
would be boring for others to hear. Nobody likes a braggart. If
you're good at something, just do it. Eventually, your skill will be
apparent. And even if others do not heap praise upon you, you will
know that you are doing a good job, and that, all by itself, is quite
satisfying.
Theodore Roosevelt said,
“Each time we face our fear, we gain strength, courage and
confidence in the doing.” Sometimes, allowing into our
awareness that we have a gift is just as difficult as feeling we have
nothing to offer. Many of us were brought up to think that we should
be humble. We carry that Biblical admonition, “Pride goes before
the fall,” imprinted deeply in our brains. But confidence and pride
are not the same. Confidence is simply assurance that we have
something to offer that is worthy. We don't need that assurance to
come from others if we believe it ourselves. And we don't need to
thump our chests about it, either.
Here is a short quote
from the Tao Te Ching: “Because one believes in oneself, one
does not try to convince others. Because one is content with oneself,
one doesn't need others' approval. Because one accepts oneself, the
whole world accepts him or her.” (Lao Tzu) What are your gifts
and talents? Are you courageous enough to offer them to others?
In the Spirit,
Jane
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