Why casts and splints you ask? Well I think of them like this. They are an important part of healing. They can mend broken things. And in order to be effective, they must be taken advantage of and treated properly. So why the comparison between something that mends a broken bone and opportunities for a new start? Well it began with a package, a note and a personal realization. All this began with a package I received from my best friend. She has been working in and out of the country for a while, and on her travels she brings back with her pieces of the places she has visited. This package came from Africa and was a beautiful hand made purse. It was created out of vibrant yellow fabric with a black elephant on either side. On the package came a simple instruction, "look inside the purse pocket". Once I finished admiring the beauty of the fabric, I opened the pocket to find two things: one being prayer beads and the second being a card. This personal realization stemmed from information included in the card. It explained that the purse was made from her favorite fabric and embodied the feeling and experience of this part of the world. But the most incredible part was that is was hand made by former sex workers who had been given a second chance in life by working for this company. They had left what they had known, and taken the opportunity to start new. This is what made this gift so special and got me thinking about second chances. My work is all about second chances, about creating a stepping stone to bigger and better things. Now some that participate in this experience may agree and others disagree, but it is none-the-less an opportunity for growth and transformation. I have seen individuals take the opportunity and run with it. They literally changed their lives and created a fresh and vibrant start. I have also seen those that disregarded the experience, even despised and resented it. It became little more than another road block, made miserable by arrogance and entitlement. So why do some of us, myself included, throw away second chances? Why not take it and run, create miracles out of chaos? Here is my best answer to this question. Fear.
With the risk of success comes the risk of failure. What if we put all we have into making a change and trying to be better and it isn't enough? Sometimes I think that choosing to not take advantage of a second chance is less scary than trying and failing. I think that, when I am confronted with trials and challenges. I think if I don't try, than I know that no one else can tell me I failed. It gives me the false sense of control and power. It is false because if that is the road I choose, I fail to grow, learn and become the best version of myself that I can be. For a human race that thrives for success, the fear of being unsuccessful is a powerful enemy. For in failure we learn to define our character. In adversity we mold our very core. I once heard that, "Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars". They are massive because they every day surmounted their fear. They took hold of second chances and opportunities and ran with them, appreciated them and did not allow them to pass by. I look at this purse and I do not see something to place a wallet in or hold a cell phone with. I see unspeakable courage, determination and a strength that I hope I can be reminded of in times of difficulty and strife. These woman act as an example to me that there is nothing that cannot be overcome, if I push aside fear and allow hope and love to conquer all obstacles. Nelson Mandela said it much more eloquently than I ever could.
"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 frightens us.
We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?
Actually, who are we not to be?
You are a child of God.
Your playing small doesn’t serve the world.
There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.
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 light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fears, our presence automatically liberates others.
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