People come in and out of our lives, and each of them helps form who we are and who we are to become.
~ Cassandra King
When introducing yourself, besides your name, what else do you say?
Your reply is likely a representation of what you currently focus on, your core values.
If career is your current priority, you might follow your name with your profession. For example, I am Mary Maciel Pearson, a caregiver.
If it is family, you might follow with a mother, father, wife, husband or grandparent.
If your dietary preference has become your passion, vegan, vegetarian, or pescatarian may come to mind.
What about me?
Where we come from does not determine whom we can become. What we look like places no limits on what we can achieve. We should all have the right to express ourselves, all have the right to be heard, and all have the right to be what we can be:
To reach for the sky and touch the stars.
No matter who we are, no matter whether we are man or woman, or rich or poor: My voice, my right. My voice counts.
~ Desmond Tutu
Once, feeling like an outlier, I replied when asked about myself, that I am Mary Maciel Pearson, an immigrant.
The inquirer wisely followed, “Is that all that you are?”
In that interaction, I learned to be careful about what I place after I am.
How do you identify?
Today, when asked how one identifies, we have been primed to think about where in the gender spectrum we fall - what pronouns we choose.
When I hear someone say, “I am heterosexual” or “I am gay or trans or non-binary”, I am inclined to think, “Is that who you are?”
Are we not more than what we do or whom we are attracted to?
How we identify is superficial
We are not our name, characteristics, personality or physical body. These we just tools we use to express ourselves in the external world.
We attract into our lives the physical manifestations of the thoughts we think. To attract good instead of evil we must learn to control our thoughts and our words. We must be able to choose good thoughts and words.
Our true nature, our essence, is innately good. The rest is learned and programmed through life experiences.
I am good
If our words lead to actions that determine our outcome, we must pay careful attention to what follows I am.
Replace,
I am depressed.
I am sick.
I am a failure.
with...
I am happy.
I am healthy.
I am capable beyond belief.
Thoughts and words can become self-fulfilling prophecies. Changing our thoughts, words and beliefs will change our destiny.
Why we are here
We are not here merely to make a living. We are here to enrich the world.
~ Woodrow Wilson
This week, I asked a few people how they would describe themselves. With glee, our son replied:
“I am a soul having a human experience.”
I chuckled. He is wise beyond his years.
According to the Buddha, our purpose in life is to re-discover our true nature - our essence - our perfection.
When we do, our path becomes clear, and loving-kindness, compassion, empathy and joy re-emerge.
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