Monday, February 8, 2010

Humility

Last night I was reading in Janis Abrahans Spring's book "How Can I Forgive You?".


She quoted Robert Emmoms definition of Humility and it really resonated with me at a deep level in which my spirit just had to let out a soothing "ahhhhh" as it sank in.

Here it is:

"Humility is the disposition to view oneself basically equal with any other human being even if there are objective differences in physical beauty, wealth, social skills, intelligence, or other resources. It is the ability to keep one's talents and accomplishments in perspective, to have a sense of self acceptance, an understanding of one's imperfections, and to be free from arrogance and low self esteem."

Just loved it.

I grew up with a different definition of humility. I was taught that humility was to accept who I was. Sounds similar to the above huh? The difference is that I was also taught who I was, and that definition of who I was painted me in a very dim light to put it mildly (please do not pity me,those who did this had only the best of intentions for me, they were not being malicious, they were just misguided themselves) . Therefore, by accepting the definition of who I was, I defined humility as debasing myself, as putting others first always and ignoring myself.

The last few years have been a deprogramming of sorts, a questioning of all those things that I just "accepted" before and never questioned. Humility is a topic that I have not directly tackled. Of course it touches many other areas, so it has been thought about from other angles, but it was good to have this come head on.


emoticon Perfect timing for another new awareness emoticon

Valentines


Don't get me wrong, I love flowers, and I adore chocolate, the darker the better. But I do not "dig" Valentines day.

Celebrations are great, taking time out to appreciate and show/voice our gratitude of others is necessary imo. The problem I see with Valentines day is the mindlessness acceptance of what one should do, and the comparison that invariably happens, as well as the unrealistic expectations that do arise.

Yes, I will be celebrating Valentines. Yes, I got my Husband something, Yes, I will do something special for my kids. But, I will also use the day to try and nurture healthy attitudes, and challenge my family to go beyond the surface and materialism and to "dig" deep and come up with more for each other and for themselves.

How do you "dig" ?

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