Be Yourself

Be Yourself.  Love who are.  Find out what you are good at.  Do not compare yourself to others.  You are unique. 

Growing up I heard all of the above phrases and more.  Funny thing is, I never actually took that advice to heart until much later.  I did try to be someone else (or at least imagined I was).  I did not always love myself the way I should have.  I even thought I was not that gifted at anything.  I compared my weaknesses to the strengths of others.  I didn't feel like one of a kind when I had braces and glasses.

Now that I am raising kids myself, I just can't get over the fact that I felt that way at times.  I know for certain that I earned every ounce of confidence I now own.  I now realize that every single one of us needs to learn how to be ourselves without worrying about what others may think of us.  It is a hard lesson.  One I personally learned over years of failures and through prayer.

I work with kids 180 days a year and I see first hand how hard it can be for individuals to be themselves while living in a world that promotes sameness.  Recently, a student privately showed me some of his drawings and then quietly admitted that he was embarrassed to show others.  When I asked why he said that most people would not understand why his art was more feminine than the drawings of other boys.  That broke my heart!  I immediately told him he should never be embarrassed of who he was and that his genetic make up allowed only him to draw in this specific way.  He shrugged in response.  I pray even to this day that something I said may have gotten through to him.  I pray every day that the positive things I say to my own kids implant into their brains and hearts!

I think hard about what I can do, or say, as a teacher to encourage kids to find their strengths and rejoice in them.  I try to slip in positive phrases or words into my mini lessons without sounding too fluffy.  What I really want to do however, is to look into each of their eyes individually and tell them how unique and special they are in the eyes of God and that nothing they can do or say will ever make him think less of them.  I want to tell them they are loved at every moment by a powerful Father in Heaven who can bless them beyond measure.  I want to tell them that they can be themselves all of the time and never be afraid of what others might think because they have a purpose in this life that only they can fulfill.   I also want to give each of them a piece of my confidence to get them through those tough moments of not feeling special.  In a lot of ways I want to love them like they were my own children.

It is not impossible for us to be ourselves but it does take time and effort.  It takes lots of positive talk and encouragement from family members and the community.  And at one crucial point in our lives it takes a decision to start loving ourselves for who we are inside and to stop trying to be someone we are not.  It takes bravery and hard endless work to try new things that scare us.

Tomorrow is Veterans Day and when I think about the men and women in our military I do not think of weakness or of a group of confused people.  I think our Veterans know exactly who they are and have chosen a career that brings them a lifetime of honor and pride.  On the news today, I heard a Mother of a Veteran say that she knows that her son is serving because he believes in his country and in his ability to serve those in need.  Her son does not care what political party you come from- he will protect you and defend your freedom with his life.  In my opinion, that is a true example of what it means to BE YOURSELF.