I'll Do What I Can

I recently came across this quote which blew me away. I don't know who said it, so I apologise for that.

“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 most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? 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 other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. 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 everyone. And as 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.”

Wow! This message of doing what we're made to do and using our gifts and talents has been bombarding me lately. I think maybe I should be listening...
I don't remember where I heard it, but I recently heard someone speak about how we are given talent and we should try to live so that we use them all up in order to "die empty". What a tragedy it is that so much wonderful potential and talent is lying buried in the graveyards of our world. Imagine if everybody who has ever lived used all of their gifts and talents, cultivated all of their good ideas and intentions, spent their life doing the thing(s) they could do... Just think about that for a second. How different would our world be? And what about if those who did use what they were given - whether it be musicians, authors, artists, political leaders, etc. - didn't? Where would we be today?
Another quote that relates to this topic and inspires me is by Helen Keller, one of my heroes. "I cannot do everything, but I can do something ... so I will not refuse to do the something I can do." Consider how awesome the world would be if everyone just did their one little thing -
Just something to think about. You are what you are and can do what you can do (and, conversely, can't do what what you can't do) for a reason. Please, do what you were made to do. The time is now. Celebrate life by living it!

What is Love? [insert head bobbing here]

I know you've probably all seen these "through a child's eyes" things before, but I particularly enjoyed these comments from kids on love. I hope they bring a smile to your dial!

(on falling in love)
"If falling in love is anything like learning how to spell, I don't want to do it. It takes too long." - Glenn, age 7
"I think you're supposed to get shot with an arrow or something, but the rest of it isn't supposed to be so painful." - Manuel, age 8
"Love is the most important thing in the world, but baseball is pretty good too." - Greg, age 8
"On the first date, they just tell each other lies, and that usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date." - Mike, 10
"I'm in favor of love as long as it doesn't happen when Dinosaurs is on television." - Jill, age 6
"One of the people has freckles, and so he finds somebody else who has freckles too." - Andrew, age 6
"One of you should know how to write a check. Because, even if you have tons of love, there is still going to be a lot of bills." - Ava, age 8
"No one is sure why love happens, but I heard it has something to do with how you smell. That's why perfume and deodorant are so popular." - Mae, age 9
"It's never okay to kiss a boy. They always slobber all over you. That's why I stopped doing it." - Tammy, age 10
"Love isn't always how you look. Look at me. I'm handsome like anything, and I haven't got anybody to marry me yet." - Brian, age 7
"It's love if they order one of those desserts that are on fire. They like to order those because it's just like how their hearts are on fire." - Christine, age 9
"Many daters just eat pork chops and french fries and talk about love." - Craig, age 9
"You got to find somebody who likes the same stuff. Like if you like sports, she should like it that you like sports, and she should keep the chips and dip coming." - Allan, age 10

(on how to make someone fall in love with you)
"Tell them that you own a whole bunch of candy stores." - Del, age 6
"Yell out that you love them at the top of your lungs...and don't worry if their parents are right there." - Manuel, age 8
"Tell her that she looks pretty even if she looks like a truck!" - Ricky, age 7

(on why lovers hold hands)
"They want to make sure their rings don't fall off, because they paid good money for them." - Gavin, age 8

(on how to tell if 2 people are married)
"You might have to guess based on whether they seem to be yelling at the same kids." - Derrick, age 8

Sweet, huh? :) I'll write a more original post tomorrow, promise.