So I went into my daughters room this morning (first act of bravery for today) to wake her up (second act of bravery for today) and while I was so engaged, saw a small bag on the floor with this saying:
“Be yourself. Unless of course you can be a mermaid, then be a mermaid.”
I thought about this for a moment. Be Yourself. People always say this, almost as if they really believe it to be true. We need to be ourselves, be true to our self, to each his own, follow your own path. Celebrate our uniqueness. We are different, and that is perfectly fine. Is it?
What if we are perfectly unique in our approach to being a loser? What if being yourself is not a good idea at all. What if we are just not that great? What if being yourself is what actually got us into this mess in the first place? Do I really want my children to be themselves? I suppose on some level, I do. I am very blessed with children that have good intent, care for others, and respect and appreciate what they have – but they also have this tendency to be lazy sometimes (like all of us), they tend to be selfish (like all of us), the tend to let themselves get overwhelmed by emotion (like all of us). Sometimes being themselves is just not a good idea at all!
I think perhaps we could amend this statement. Instead of the platitude we could say:
“Be a Mermaid”
Maybe that is the better message for my daughter. Be something impossible. Make the impossible become your reality. Take what you have and craft your future the way you want. Become something, become the impossible. Recognize the gap between what you are and what you could become. No, I think I want my children to realize what I have come to realize – concepts like “being yourself” are designed to make you feel good while in mediocrity, to feel better about a life that has fallen short. You could be a complete drain on society, yet the concept of being yourself somehow makes it all OK. Well it does not.
We all need a dose of reality. We may have some natural talents, some inclinations that are unique to us, that is wonderful. I celebrate the individual too, but only for a moment because even the most natural talented person can never become a Mermaid or anything else awesome without a lifetime of dedication, purpose, and practice. So yeah, throw a giant glass of cold water in the face of “yourself” and wake up – you are not that awesome right now. However, you could become awesome. Are you willing to do what it takes to get there?
Few people are willing. Few people will put in the effort. That is why so few of our young daughters grow up to be Mermaids.
Guy Reams
365 Member
36 Days Left to 1st Marathon
