We’re a lot like
those flowers, aren’t we? Every day, several times a day, we have the
opportunity to remain stuck in the mud – to hold onto grudges, retaliate, grump
around, mope, wallow in self pity, succumb to hurtful habits—or to grow out of
the mud and bloom into our true, beautiful nature. We can choose to remain
tightly curled into ourselves or we can open our hearts as a generous gift to
those around us.
Staying in the mud
is safe. It’s comfortable. It’s what we know, and it allows us to latch onto
excuses, “This is who I am. This is all I know. I was born this way. I can’t.
I’m too scared. It shouldn’t be so hard. I deserve better.”
When we stay in
the mud, we waste precious minutes, hours, days, weeks, months and years
waiting for someone or something to rescue us—to pull us out of our own muck.Rising out of the
mud takes courage. It allows us to hurt, but it also allows us to love.
Think about that
whenever you are tempted to curl in tight to protect yourself from what makes
you uncomfortable. Ask yourself, “Do I want to stay in the muck? Or do I want
to rise above?”
No matter what you
tell yourself, you do not deserve the muck. There is beauty inside, and people
around you are just waiting for you to open those petals and share it.
"A pristine waterlily discouraged by its surroundings, rises from the
depths of a murky pond. It's lotus petals perfume the air, as it flowers
and blooms brilliantly, purely, divinely, despite and probably because
of its origins. Becoming a spiritual person does not mean you to
leave your prior life behind, but instead you integrate,
learn, remember, and respect what brought you to this point in the
first place." Jacquelene Close Moore
