I read often, "what would you say to your younger self"
I was cleaning my spare room for a guest (man was it dusty up there!) and I have so many pictures everywhere so it always takes me longer to clean than it should because I get caught up in looking at pictures or reading a card.
Today I came across this picture.
I thought "wow, look at that joy!"
What would I say to her looking back at a life well loved. Yes, you read that right. Well loved, not well lived.
Let's face it that little girl grows up to make poor choices and mistakes, just like everyone else. What's different about her choices? She doesn't walk in shame, she more than recovers, she thrives.
But wow. I have loved. I have lost more than I can count, and I don't count the cost, because love is always worth it. Fun fact about me, sometimes after talking to the people that are on my team (direct reports or not) sometimes I almost say "love you" when I hang up. I may have slipped a time or two LOL. I'll never be sorry I loved. Ever, no matter how long, no matter how it ended, I'll never be sorry I loved because each time, the person mattered and I was changed... for good. I never lose. I either win or I learn. But love is not a destination, it is a journey.
I'd tell that little girl (or maybe an older version of her) that she will lose her joy and her value, and then she will find it again. Peace is something that she will discover and once she does, she will do whatever it takes to keep it and protect it.
There will be people and things that come in life that try to steal her joy, but there will be more things that come and restore it, grow it, and pour it onto other like a refreshing salve.
Little girl, you came to this world to change it. To carry hope, love, and joy to a world that so desperately needs it. Don't dull your smile for anything. Hug hard, love well, and bring that joy that is so deep in your soul that no one can ever really steal it.
Comments