Hey, welcome to the podcast. I’m gonna share a short story with you that has been on my mind recently. It highlights a perspective that I’ve been playing with around dealing with comparison.
I was on one of the most emotionally charged trips of my life in the autumn of 2016. My father was leaving the country and my mother was moving 6 yours west to live near us.
In the midst of all the lawyers, logistics, and being an emotional support to my sweet Mum, she had cataract surgery.
We tried to move her 2 follow up appointments to my town, but her surgeon refused. So we had to be flexible.
We arranged several trips back and forth from Southwestern Ontario to Ottawa in a 1 week period, all while getting her packed up and moved.
I should mention, that at the time, my mother was 78 years young and had lived in the same region for her entire life.
On our final trip, we had a lot of time between appointments and I wondered how to fill the day, since the bulk of the moving related activity was complete.
It was such a difficult, emotional time and I wanted to make it special for her - a distraction. I wanted to create a beautiful memory in her hometown before she left, instead of just pushing through a hard time.
Then I remembered how much she loved art. She had painted as a young woman and really enjoyed it. So I planned the day to include a lazy morning at the hotel watching HGTV and an early lunch at the National Gallery of Canada. I had gotten her an annual pass and she loved wandering around the exhibits on her own.
After lunch while taking in the beautiful view from floor to ceiling windows, we set off to the first section of art. Mom was excited to show me around. I realized that this was the first time in many years that she and I were two girls out on the town, the last being when she came to help me get ready for my wedding.
It was also the first time I had an afternoon with no responsibilities in a while - no teaching - no meal prep - or meetings - nobody needing anything.
Just free space - open time
Near the end of our meandering, I caught my mother watching me with the first full smile on her face that I had seen that day. One tha lit up her eyes. She was enjoying herself in the art but also enjoying watching me blissfully lost in the beauty I was taking in.
Able to relax and not even look at the clock. We had nowhere else to be. It was quiet and few people were in the section of the gallery we were in.
Mom told me to take my time and soak it all in. She remembered how busy and tiring mothering and multi-tasking could be.
The look on her face is one of my fav memories of that time
So I lingered.
I marvelled at the incredible works display all around me and it really intrigued me how each painter had a different focus, style, and brushstroke, yet all the pieces displayed an element of beauty.
Many were masterpieces.
As the memory of my trip to the gallery that day resurfaced in my mind recently, it struck me.
We are all masterpieces. Each one of us created with different nuances, strengths, ideas, and journeys to walk.
Each talented painter whose works I took in that day had their own vision for their art. They may have gotten stuck by comparing themselves to the other painters of their time, they were human after all, but eventually they called it a day and pronounced their work finished. Ready to display.
I’m so glad they did, because I’ll always treasure the memory of that day and they were part of it. I thought the special memory of that day at the art gallery would be mostly for my mum, but it’s one I’m so grateful for.
Whatever you’re planning or working towards in your life, imagine that you’re a living, breathing masterpiece.
You were uniquely designed with amazing qualities.
And if you look back over the last year, 5 years, decade or longer, you’ll see areas of your life where you’ve grown more deeply into who you’re meant to be.
I like to think that as we’re co-creating our lives with our Creator, more nuances, highlights, and glimmers of growth appear as we live. When you compare yourself to someone else, you miss the important qualities that have only been entrusted to you.
Instead, you can find pleasure in celebrating the beauty and unique expression in the people around you, while you use the special gifts waiting to be harnessed in your own life.
Imagine what your life would look and feel like if everyone around you did the same?
Start with you and you never know who might follow your lead.
Let’s see what’s possible.
Big Blessings