Borders.

This last week I wrote a paper about Borders and the role they play in prejudice. I would like to share a small section of it with you concerning borders that we find within ourselves.

This internal struggle which was mentioned previously brings us to the final borders which we all face, the ones within ourselves. The idea that we are what we make of ourselves can very much be hindered by lines we believe we ourselves cannot cross. These internalized handicaps can be far more detrimental to our success and happiness than any ailment or abnormality that we are born with. They can be fed to us through years of conditioning or simply pressed upon us like a brand seared into our skin. They can even be slipped ever so lightly over our eyes like a pair of sun glasses that everyone seems to wear and have because they are desirable or just “what is done”. Whatever the reason for these barriers, no chain can match their strength.

I guess I wanted to share that with you all because I have seen people dear and important to me be held down by these self defining and limiting chains. It is sad. Nelson Mandela said " You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world... We were born to manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not in just some of us; it is in everyone."

This Inner strength can be hard to recognize at times but I think a big reason for that is because it must be cultivated. Parents, friends, teachers, these are the gardeners of our lives and but the two biggest people who can develop this strength are God and myself. One of my favorite talks on this deals with the power humility can bring called “To Walk Humbly with Thy God” by Elder Marlin K. Jensen (Click here to read it). He quotes the English Author John Ruskin when he said “I do not mean, by humility, doubt of his own power. … [But really] great men … have a curious … feeling that … greatness is not in them, but through them. … And they see something Divine … in every other man … , and are endlessly, foolishly, incredibly merciful.” That has really helped me with our outlook on myself and what I can and can't do, I hope it does the same for you.

Anyway, I just thought I would share with you what I've been thinking about as I eat my cup of noodle and smashed cookies for lunch. I don't really know what newly wed blogs do but that doesn't matter. Peace out.

Jake