I’ve just heard the title track (all 12 seconds of it) from Alicia Keys latest album. I was so struck by it that I’ve added it to the growing number of quotes in my email signature.
“And the day came when the risk it took to remain tight and closed in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to bloom. This is the element of freedom.”
That’s it. Just 12 seconds of her speaking. But what powerful words!
Yesterday I was struck by a choice I often seem to have to make. My status on Facebook said ” Caroline is resisting the urge to take a long walk down Self Pity Avenue!” It was the first day back at work for me and school for my daughter, the alarm went off and the last thing I wanted to do was get out of bed and face the challenges of this next term.
I often wonder how I can tell the difference between necessary times of being honest about my struggles and my pain and times where I begin to meander into self pity. I doubt there’s a definitive answer but today, I read a little something by Jeff Lucas that helped me understand a bit more:
“Heroes make hard choices: they cry but refuse to allow their tears to blind them. They refuse to stop loving, they don’t give up on giving and won’t let their lives be preoccupied by their own pain. And in giving grace they find an endless supply of it. The oil doesn’t run dry.”
So while I’m being honest about my struggles I think I need to remember to take the risk to open up and bloom instead of staying tightly closed in my bud (or bed!)
This is so encouraging, I’m sure we all find it hard to know the line between self pity and honesty. Great quotes too.