Shining our Light

Life fully loved
27 February 2022

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Remember this old gospel song?

This little light of mine
I’m going to let it shine
Oh, this little light of mine
I’m going to let it shine

I remember when our kids attended nursery school and they would sing this song holding up a finger to represent a candle while they solemnly walked up the centre aisle of the church during closing ceremonies. It always brought tears to my eyes.

We’d hear titters and small gasps from the audience which scared the little ones because they didn’t want to be laughed at. They didn’t realise how dazzling they looked shining their light for all to see. I think that’s what caused the nervous laughter – the children didn’t question themselves. They knew who they were and that they each had talents. The result for us adults? Discomfort. Squeamishness. When they came to,

Hide it under a bushel? No!
I’m going to let it shine
Hide it under a bushel? No!
I’m going to let it shine
Let it shine, all the time, let it shine.

well, there was not a dry eye in the house.

Shining a Light

When do we lose this innate understanding of who we are and the talents we contribute to the world around us? Certainly in adolescence and likely sooner. Too often we embrace darkness. Our world can be without hope sometimes at an individual and collective (hello pandemic!) level. We spiral into anxiety and its attendants: control, ego, helplessness. And it’s true that we are both dark and light. We must understand our darkness to know ourselves.

Equally and opposite, we must welcome our light. Each of us carries our own torch. Your light may beam, shimmer, glow, spark, glimmer or change like a kaleidoscope. Point is, you have your own light and it’s meant to shine. The light represents who you are and the unique gifts (talents) you are given.

Accepting our Gifts

Marianne Williamson writes in Tears to Triumph, “The universe is wired for God’s light the way a house is wired for electricity, and every mind is like a lamp. But a lamp must be plugged in for it to shed any light.” Her recommendation? “Plug into the light.” (p.3)

When things come easily to us, we don’t automatically accept them as gifts (or talents if you prefer). We think they’re not worth as much because they come easily. Instead of accepting and using these talents, we create another hoop to jump through to create self-imposed hardship. For example, I sucked at Math. Really. I was good at English and History. Instead of taking more courses in subjects I truly enjoyed and had some talent in, I devoted an inordinate amount of time trying to improve my math skills. I easily spent twice if not three times the amount of time on math versus “easy” subjects I liked.

As a middle-aged coach and former HR professional, I can now comfortably say, Play to your strengths. This is a variation of Marianne’s advice, Plug into the light. When we accept our gifts, we allow ourselves a reprieve from the endless hoops of life. When we accept our gifts, we can shine our light.

Header photo by Prateek Gautam on Unsplash, Multiple Candlesticks Photo by Niklas Ohlrogge on Unsplash, Bushel Photo by Photo by Victor Serban on Unsplash, Kaleidoscope Photo by Malcolm Lightbody on Unsplash

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