It’s the holiday season, and I’m sure most of us have spent
the last few weeks scouring shops and websites in hopes of finding the
perfect present that will undoubtedly light up the face of a loved one
come Christmas Day. Gifts of all sizes are wrapped in pretty paper
and adorned with ribbons and bows, and tucked under a warmly glowing tree for
safe keeping, until the day arrives when they get to do their job: make
someone’s day. Gift-giving has undoubtedly been on many minds these last few
weeks, and I’ve seen no shortage of wishlists floating around the blogosphere –
but today, I want to address something else related to gifts: those which were
given to us at birth.
In some way
or another, we are all gifted. Some of us are fantastic listeners, great writers,
artists, or musicians. Some of us understand chemicals and equations, or the
inner workings of technology, and some of us are born to sing or spread a
message throughout the world. Some of us are born to be on the stage,
and some of us allow our imaginations to soar onto the pages of books published
by the million, working their way into the hearts of a generation. Let’s think
about that for a second – because there are so many of us out there who’ve written about
hopes and dreams and secret passions, yet used fear and excuses to not explore
and develop them. “But what if I’m not good enough?” has become something of a
mantra throughout the Backpage collective consciousness, resulting in thousands of
potential gifts being locked up and hidden away, quashing any potential in the
slightest they could have to make this world or someone’s life that little
bit better.
I received an
e-mail recently from a man whose story I was lucky enough to
hear last summer, Patrick Combs. He had an interesting point about worldwide
phenomenon Stephenie Meyer*, the biggest selling author of the last
two years: she almost didn’t submit Twilight to
publishers because she thought her writing wasn’t good enough. [Pause.]
Potential irony aside, clearly by taking a leap of faith in offering her gift
to the world, she found her calling, made millions, and won over the teenage
masses with tales of angst
Five years ago I had a strong
sense that I wanted to be a speaker and I became one. But now I’m back to
wondering what I should TRULY be doing with my life, and now the ‘What to do
with my life?’ question seems more important than ever. First off, the panic
I’ve felt this week stems from a deep seated fear: Fear of missing my calling.
Wouldn’t it be awful to miss
your calling? What could be worse? Also, I’m certain that “success” isn’t what
I’m after. Simply reaching the top is not what I’m out to do. I’m out to give
the gift I was meant to give – whether doing so ultimately makes me rich,
middle class, or poor. Famous, notable, or unknown. Getting to the top of your Backpagefield can’t
be as important as becoming what you were put on the planet to become.
Fulfilling your calling has to be the peak of the pyramid. Giving your
gift – the one gift you can and were born to give – must be the ticket.
I’ve seen countless people going through their lives – myself
very much included – being held back by feelings of inadequacy. I believe we
were all given gifts the day we were born, and we are all drawn toward certain
interests, hobbies and passions so we can tap into them, open them up, and give
them to the world. Yet so often, they are held hostage, hidden away
untouched and unused, and never given the opportunity to shine.
As I’d
mentioned, I’ve seen a lot of wishlists floating around in the last few
weeks leading up to Christmas. TV boxsets, makeup, gadgets, and mp3 players may
result in a smile for a few days, but
they are all temporal. Why not choose ones that could last a
lifetime? We’ve all had great Christmas presents, and we’ve all had one or
two pretty rubbish ones. Why is it that when it comes to a Backpage Christmas
gift, we don’t hesitate in going straight back to Best Buy on Boxing Day to
exchange it for something better, yet when it comes to the gifts we’re given in
our very souls, we’re
perfectly content to accept the useless (fear, anxiety,
and self-doubt), and
refuse to enjoy the brilliant? On my wishlist this
year, I want to open the great gifts. The ones I want to someday offer to the
world through compassion, song, speech and written word. I want to
make the choice to accept and recognize them instead of settling for a cheap,
half-hearted knock-off tainted by what I’ve settled for for so long.
This Christmas, in the spirit of gift-giving, ask yourself if
you’re ready to give yours. Follow those passions and release those fears, do
what feels comes naturally, and go after what makes
you bubble with enthusiasm. Cultivate your talents, listen to your
dreams, and follow your heart. You never know whose Christmas you might
end up making the best yet.
* While we’re on the subject of Twilight… (I’m sorry )
