My wife, Christina, is doing a link up on her blog, My Silly Life and I am jumping on the theme of what inspires me! Wow that is a hard one but I am going to start off with one that has pushed me for 29 years.
My Mother……..wow she was amazing. I won't go into a ton of details since I have shared some of her story but my mother was 5 feet nothing, independent, carried her heart on her sleeve, strong as a mule, always calm, never raised her voice, and had character like no other. Early on she was a single mother fighting and scrapping to take care of us, and I can't recall a time where I felt I wasn't being taken care of.
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| My mom and me! |
I think now about how times she went without for me. Like I said above……... I was well taken care but my mother put her life to the side to be the very best mother too me. That didn't mean buying me everything. She was my best friend, someone I could talk too, she never judged me, only criticized in a way that I could learn from it, and I owe so much of who I am today to her.
My mother passed away almost 10 years ago. My mother could have given up and lived her last 6 months living to the fullest, but she took experimental treatments and tons of treatments for me. She fought almost 5 1\2 months trying to beat the cancer so that she could continue living as my mother and best friend. The last week of her life she made me promise her that I would complete College, my Master's Degree, and complete the CPA Exam. I haven't completely fulfilled the promise……..I ordered the CD's to take the practice test for the CPA Exam but I have been running from it. To be honest when it came time to take the practice test is about the time I started fearing more than I was fearless.
What ever it was that she spoke into my hear to be that confident, fearless, smart, and person reaching for the stars……. I need to find again. It is right around the corner I just need to put my hands on it.
“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 most. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and famous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that 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 all of us. And when we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
Used by Nelson Mandela in his 1994 inaugural speech
