Astonish the World

“My wish is that you continue. Continue to be who you are and how you are. To astonish a mean world with your acts of kindness. Continue to allow humor to lighten the burden of your tender heart.” – Maya Angelou

Full disclosure...it’s really easy to get discouraged and down. I don’t always do a great job of pulling things off with a smile. The old me, the one in denial, would use humor to cover any negative feelings. When I finally admitted to myself that I was a victim of sexual abuse and that I had suffered unspeakable acts, I truly saw myself as who I was. I wasn’t the person that I had conjured up in my head and showed to everyone. I was Damaged. Shameful. Guilty. Violated. Terrorized. Anxious. Depressed. Angry. Sad. Hurt. Powerless. Dirty. Worthless. Scared. Alone. Helpless. Hopeless. Physically in Pain. Mentally exhausted. Tired. Grieving. Ugly. Lost. Without Purpose. Overwhelmed. I was all of these things.

That’s really hard to accept. The first time I put that in writing, it broke my heart but it also liberated me. With the grace of God, counseling, prayer ministry and the unwavering support of my family and friends, I am in a much better place today. I am striving to do what Maya Angelou said. Instead of focusing on what happened to me, I focus on helping others.

It doesn’t matter to me who you are, you are worthy of kindness. Of course, I do focus on survivors-from any trauma because I know how important it is to be validated by someone else. It’s important that we all know that it’s ok not to be ok all of the time. It’s equally important to know that you matter, you are loved and the world is a better place because you are in it.

Astonish the world with your acts of kindness….sounds like a good plan to me!