You are "A People"
A little girl was asked to bring her birth certificate to school one
day. Her mother wisely cautioned her about the important document and
told her to be especially careful with it. But in spite of her good
intentions, the child lost it. When she became aware of its loss, she
began to cry.
"What's the problem, Honey?" her teacher asked sympathetically.
The little girl wailed, "I lost my excuse for being born!"
Isn't it wonderful that we don't need an excuse for being born? We
need make no apologies for being who we are. Nobody on planet earth is
more or less valuable than you. Sometimes we need to be reminded of
that, especially when our sense of self-worth is less than it ought to
be.
Several years ago, an older friend of mine developed Alzheimer's
disease. Bill had lived an active and productive professional life.
But in his latter years, his wife cared for him at home. He was aware
of his increasing dependency on her and of the debilitating effect of
the disease on his mind. Bill gave up everything he had ever done for
himself until eventually nothing was left. As his mind suffered, his
sense of worthiness also took a beating. He felt as if he were nobody.
There was one group to which he belonged that decided to stay with him
during his decline. He sat on the University of Denver Board of
Trustees and was encouraged by them to continue attending meetings as
long as he was able. One of the board members drove Bill to the
meetings and brought him back home afterward. This continued even
after he had lost his ability to remember names, track a conversation
or participate in any meaningful way.
His wife knew that he remained a board member in name only and that
their decision to include him was made solely out of compassion. But
Bill seemed to enjoy himself at the meetings and she reasoned that
they were probably good for him. After he returned from one such
meeting of the trustees, his wife asked him, "Did you have a good
meeting, Bill?"
He thought for a moment before replying. Then he answered quite
honestly, "I don't know." After a pause, he added this heartfelt
comment: "But they still think I'm a people."
To them, he was somebody. To them, he mattered. He was still a person
of value and worth. He could no longer read or write or do any of the
things that had been important earlier. But he was still "a people."
You need make no apologies for being who you are. You are a person of
value – unique and beautiful. You are "a people" -- unrepeatable and
of infinite worth. That is something to celebrate!
Used with Permission
©Steve Goodier
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