Sunday, July 5, 2015

Remembering Who We Are


We, as human beings, have this innate tendency to search for ourselves in our interaction with the world around us. And that is not necessarily a bad thing. But we do not really "find" ourselves in the sense that we find something that wasn't there or that was missing. It is a matter of becoming and nourishing who we already are: children of a loving Heavenly Father who knows us and loves us and can help us experience lasting happiness.

Who we are is ever-present- the seeds of what we can become remain inside our minds and hearts whether we acknowledge them or not. Our choices unlock or stifle our growth and potential--so yes our choices and interaction with the world around us do matter and help us reach our biggest brightest selves. But it is always frustrating to me when movies or books depict a character's triumphant self-discovery as something like breaking rules or breaking social norms. Not that all rules or social norms are healthy and should be followed. But I also don't believe that someone has truly liberated themselves or "found" their true selves simply because they jump into a swimming pool without clothes on...or something like that.

I guess, what I'm trying to say, is that the journey to self isn't so much about finding which rules should be broken or what it feels kind of nice and fun to do in the moment--it seems to be more about discovering what behaviors and rules and creative experiences bring true and lasting growth and freedom and happiness...which behaviors, rules, and creative experiences bring you closer to understanding your Creator and thus closer to understanding yourself. Because whether we like to admit it sometimes or not, He who made us, understands us in a way no one else can.

I know that there are some who don't believe we were intentionally created at all...but I still would think that for them, the same principles for self-discovery hold true: that you try to look for and find the behaviors and rules and creative experiences that bring true and lasting growth, freedom and happiness.

But I will quit jabbering. Here is someone who explains my sentiments far better than I can:

"This last thought reminds me of a very beautiful song that is found in the Church’s French hymnbook—one that doesn’t exist in the hymnals of any other country. It is titled “Souviens-toi,” which means “Remember,” and is set to music from the New World Symphony by Antonín Dvořák. It is the song of a parent addressing a newborn child.
Allow me to read the third verse to you:
Remember, my child: At the dawn of time,
We were friends playing in the wind.
Then one day, in joy, we chose
To accept the great plan of life from the Lord.
That evening, my child, we promised,
Through love, through faith, to be reunited.6
“Remember, my child.” One of the great adventures of life is that of finding out who we really are, where we came from, and then living consistently in harmony with our identity and the purpose of our existence.
Brigham Young said: “The greatest lesson you can learn is to know yourselves. … You have to come here to learn this. … No being can thoroughly know himself, without understanding more or less of the things of God; neither can any being learn and understand the things of God without knowing himself: he must know himself, or he never can know God.”7
Recently, my daughters pointed out to me that an excellent allegory of this principle is found in the filmThe Lion King. Your generation grew up to the sounds and images of this movie. You probably remember the scene where Simba receives a visit from his father, Mufasa, the deceased king. After his father died, Simba fled far from the kingdom because he felt guilty about his father’s death. He wanted to escape his responsibility as heir to the throne.
His father appears to him and warns him: “You have forgotten who you are and so have forgotten me. Look inside yourself, Simba. You are more than what you have become. You must take your place in the circle of life.” Then this invitation is repeated several times: “Remember who you are. … Remember who you are.”
Simba, completely shaken by this experience, decides to accept his destiny. He confides in his friend, the shaman monkey, that it “looks like the winds are changing.”
The monkey replies, “Change is good.”
And Simba says: “But it’s not easy. I know what I have to do. But going back means I’ll have to face my past. I’ve been running from it for so long.”
“Where are you going?” the monkey asks him.
“I’m going back!” cries Simba.8
We can all take—or take back—our place in the circle of life. Become who you really are. Your happiness and ability to find balance in your life will occur as you find, recognize, and accept your true identity as a child of our Heavenly Father and then live in accordance with this knowledge."
Gérald J. Caussé
, We Are the Architects of Our Own Happiness

-Elin
Who thinks Dvorak's music is just wonderful.

No comments:

Post a Comment