Thursday, September 17, 2009

An obligation to thrive?

I made a comment yesterday that surprised even me! And yet, when I looked at it, I realized that it's perhaps the most honest thing that has ever come out of my mouth, and most probably came from the very deep recesses of my knowing, that still, small voice within....

We have an obligation to thrive.

Of all the "shoulds" we are taught, this one seems to be the most evasive. Why? Because we are taught that we "should" do something in a prescribed way. Trouble is, whose prescription are we following? And is it really the right prescription for us?

My father said to me, when I was in my twenties, "Jean (my given name), if you can't marry a doctor, lawyer or dentist, become one."

My beloved creative writing professor told me, when I declared my intention to major in English, "Perhaps you ought to pursue a different career."

My church told me, "Tis better to give than receive."

For a very long time, and perhaps still in the back of my mind, I believed all of these prescriptions. However....

I'm much better at numbers crunching than medical terms.
I write pretty well if I'm writing about something I am truly passionate about.
And if we're giving all the time, how does the other person get to feel good about giving?

It is very difficult to feel like we are thriving if we are perceiving ourselves through someone else's prescription. And you know what?

We are always thriving. We have all of the gifts in front of us, available to us, in untold abundance, all the time. However, as long as we see ourselves through what appears to be other people's eyes and perception, we will never see those gifts. As long as we are measuring our wealth by the world's yardstick, we will never see that we measure up and more, just by breathing in this very moment.

Not only do we have an obligation to thrive, we ARE thriving. We can't help it, it's who we really are.

Take off the world colored glasses and see yourself for the wonder and awe that you are.

See that you are meeting your obligation to thrive right now.

We are all waiting to see........

3 comments:

  1. Jet - absolutely LOVE this! Thanks for the words of wisdom! Linda

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  2. Perfect reminder for all of us that it is so much easier to be that person within than attempting to be that other fictitious person that someone else thinks we are or should be! Thank you!

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