It's been awhile since I blogged anything, but something just keeps floating around in my mind and I'd thought I'd share- and maybe get your thoughts about this as well. It really sparked from a conversation that I had with one of my sisters recently. She was telling me of an experience and how someone told her "she was so kind" and my sister Mary mentioned that that was one of the greatest things someone could say to her, because that is not what she normally hears about herself. And I was like, "wait, really?" because for me, that is exactly what I hear all the time! I am so often described as sweet, kind... and for the longest time it has kind of frustrated me. What I have hoped someone would say about me is that I am smart or dynamic or probably any number of things that are not necessarily the first things someone thinks about when they hear my name. Things that I really admire in others, but maybe don't always feel about myself. She went on to say that she is usually labeled as being smart or efficient, but not necessarily kind. It just made me stop and think. You know what- I love kind people! Why have I always been frustrated by that label? I'm pretty sure my sister also really appreciates smart and efficient people. Why have I wanted to diminish my natural gifts or personality traits ? In the Doctrine and Covenants 46 there are a few verses about gifts:
11 For all have not every gift given unto them; for there are many gifts, and to every man is given a gift by the Spirit of God.
12 To some is given one, and to some is given another, that all may be profited thereby.
My day to day kindness can hopefully benefit others and my smart and efficient ( and also kind) sister is an amazing nurse and those skills and talents help her to bless others as a nurse but in other areas as well. Can we be happy with the gifts that we've been given? Can we appreciate in others the amazing gifts they've been given? Can we not degrade ourselves when we don't have every gift to the extent we would like? I'm not saying I can't still strive to be dynamic in some way, or really smart, or that my sister shouldn't be kind, but just perhaps that we need to also accept our own goodness and stop judging ourselves so harshly.
Share your gifts and appreciate others gifts as well.
And so it goes...Sue
Just read :"Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, and Finding Joy" by Adam Grant and Sheryl Sandberg I definitely found it to be a worthwhile read and think sometimes about kicking the heck out of option b and making it the best possible when things don't go according to plan A.
Reading now: " A Man Called Ove" took me awhile to get into it, but a good book.
