What's being whittled away?

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"He who trims himself to suit everyone will soon whittle himself away." ~Raymond Hull, Canadian Playwright

Somewhere along the way, I stopped thinking for myself and started to care too much about what others thought about me.

Or, as a good friend likes to say, I let others be my "voices of authority."

I let others tell me who I was.

I let others tell me how to be find approval.

I let others tell me how to live my life that was oh-so-easily performance based.

I whittled myself down to their pre-approved size and shape.

A few years ago, I stopped the whittling process. I dropped the knife.

It's taken a while, but I'm finding myself again. I'm daring to ask myself, "Who am I?"--and I'm trying to listen to the right voices--safer ones--for my answers.

Thinking Out Loud: As a mom, I have a lot of influence in my children's lives. I can touch them like the slash of a knife--and possibly scar them forever. Or I can affect my children with a timely, prayed-over word or action--and enable their innate beauty and strength to be revealed. May my children be confident in who they are so their talents and gifts will not be overpowered by a world that demands they conform to a "one size fits all" mentality.