My coworker gave me a wonderful birthday gift last fall. It’s a little beverage coaster that reads,
Pretending to be a normal person day-after-day is exhausting.”
That little coaster sits on my desk ready to receive my coffee mug or water bottle each day. It reminds me to be my best self even when it seems like the world doesn’t want that. It’s a quick, silly way to be reminded of the Marianne Williamson quote I posted way back in 2010 then used again at the Guiding Coalition off-site in July 2012,
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 is 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 are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
Who are we not to shine. Let’s stop pretending. Shine bright my friends.
