Wow! It is already December 5th!
The year 2022 has been a
year of growth for me. I have learned the power of my Yes AND the power of my
No.
Oftentimes we miss
opportunities because No is our default response. Either we do not view
ourselves as capable or we are held captive by the familiar. We say things
like, “this is just the way I am” or “this is how I have always done
it.” Just like that favorite chair that you have which has the
indentation of your back side, after years of sitting in the same spot. You
enjoy a good cup of tea, while sitting in the chair. When you sit down to enjoy
a movie, you can swing your legs to the side, curled up underneath a
warm blanket. This same indented chair cradles you every time you take a seat,
at the end of a long day. It still matches the room decor, so it is not out of
place. It is simply comfortable.
Then one day, you happen
upon a furniture store and realize that there are so many other chairs that could match your room decor. Some of the chairs are shaped differently and have
different textures or features, but you get a glimpse of the potential of
taking one of these new chairs home with you. You even get excited because you
imagine how this chair could brighten the space at home and give it a fresh
look; until you look at the price of the chair and realize that it costs to
take that chair home. Being the cautious individual that you are, you quickly
talk yourself out of it and go back home. No impulse shopping today!
You are proud of
yourself because you dodged that bullet and saved money! Kudos to you (and your
financial planner) because that new chair was not in your budget. As you drive
back home, the thought of those new chairs quickly leave your mind, and you
move on to the next thing.
Everything is fine,
until you go back, sit in your familiar chair, and realize that the groove fits you a little differently. Although still perfect for the space, you notice that it
leaves your posture tilted just a tad. You realize that you must kick your legs
up to build enough momentum to work your way out of the well-worn indentation. “Hmm,
I hadn’t noticed this before” you say to yourself as you remember the
plethora of chair options in the furniture store. Night after night, you go
back and sit in the same comfortable chair, but you begin to imagine what one
of the newer chairs could add to this room. You wonder, “if I say Yes to
this new chair, what will I have to say No to?” You even begin to count the
cost of how much those furniture store chairs might set you back. You start
calculating how you can save money by not eating out as much, instead deciding
to make morning coffee at home or by packing your leftovers for lunch. In your
mind, you begin to move the existing furniture around to see if you can create a
fresh look for the room. You can hang pictures on a different wall and
rearrange the existing furniture to set a different tone for this space. You
oscillate between should I or should I not, until you finally take the leap and
say Yes.
***
When I said Yes, at the
beginning of the year, I did not realize that I was saying Yes to thinking and
moving outside of my comfortable chair. With that Yes, came a renewed
confidence and the power to change, control my narrative, and rearrange my
entire room decor. My Yes allowed me the ability to not be afraid to stand on
the wall and speak truth to power for myself and others.
Yes, to embracing the
kids of color in the community, who are lagging academically, and creating
programs to help parents who need an advocate.
Yes, to calling our
legislators and legislation to the carpet when their policies do not support
the well-being of children.
Yes, to speaking up for
myself even when others did not understand my moves.
Yes, to self-care which
in some cases involved sitting outside soaking up the sun’s rays in stillness.
Yes, to not being ruled
by fake fears.
Yes, to trying new
things. (Go with your knees knocking, but by all means…GO.)
Yes, to trusting my gut!
(You never lose when you bet on yourself and God.)
But with that Yes, it
was also imperative to recognize when saying No was expedient.
I said No to being
defined by others.
No, to being paralyzed
by fear.
No, to simply going with
the crowd. #IndependentThinker
No, to viewing myself as
small and insignificant when I KNOW that I am greater than my wildest
imagination.
No, to allowing the
expectations of others dictate my actions or decide my outcome.
No, to allowing the
enemy to wreak havoc over my mind, my family, or my circle of friends.
No, to looking outside
of myself to confirm my worth. (I am more than enough and so are you!)
***
There is power in your
Yes AND power in your No!
When you tap into your
light and allow it to shine brightly, it will illuminate your path and guide your
forward movement as you begin the redecoration process.
No to fear and Yes to
faith.
No to mediocrity and Yes
to marvellousness.
No to the opinions of
others and Yes to the omniscience of God.
No to insecurities and
Yes to your imagination.
Throughout this year, I
have rearranged the furniture in my room several times. Last year, I sat
comfortably in my chair with the familiar indentation, simply happy to be alive
and surrounded by the people I love. But this year, I began counting the cost
of what saying Yes AND No could mean to the decor of my life.
Even as we began rearranging
furniture to make room for this years' Christmas tree, I realized that I must let go of
some things to make room for the new. There are two pictures that I took down off
the wall by the tree and I have already decided that when Christmas is over and
the tree is down, I will not put them back on the wall. I think I will leave it
bare until I have a different vision and new direction for the wall space. I
want to cultivate an area that suits my new mindset. (Someone else might
call this decluttering.)
I invite you to take
this last month of 2022 to be reflective and reevaluate the decor of your room(s).
What have you closed yourself off to because you have become so comfortable
with the familiar? What opportunities have you missed out of fear of making a
difficult decision? There are some things to which you need to say NO
immediately because they will not serve you. Yet there are plenty of options to
which you should just say YES, trust your gut, and grow with God.
Recognize your genius
and the light you possess inside and allow that to be your guide. Redecorating
your room does not mean that the old furniture is bad or of inferior quality,
it just means that you have a new vision of how you choose to navigate your existing
space. Your Yes has opened you up to more options!
You cannot say that you
want more out of life, yet keep relegating yourself to the mundane out of fear.
I encourage you to stop by a furniture store this week, find a chair, close
your eyes, and dream a new vision for yourself.
Now walk it out…….…2023 is on the way.
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