I’ve seen a lot of Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest posts saying “Stay humble”. Makes me wonder why for me it’s more often a case of BE Humbled. Maybe that’s cause I didn’t start off humble?
I had parents who thought I was amazing and gifted and beautiful from the second I popped out and said goo goo gah gah. I was pretty cute back then, so I got used to everyone thinking I was some kind of miracle from before I’d done anything more impressive than drool on myself. For me humility was something life had to school me in, and guys, I am one slow learner.
Over the years and many cringe-worthy opportunities to grow, I’ve learned that it’s not so difficult to be humbled when you look around and realise:
1. You are a very small person in a really REALLY big world.
Look at the ocean, look at the sky, look at the shades of green and brown and grey around you! How wonderful, how sublime, how lucky we are to have access to wide open living – whether it be natural landscapes or concrete jungles. You are lovely to behold, but try taking your eyes off yourself for a moment and you’ll notice that the world is glorious and eagerly waiting for you to come outside and see and learn and explore and play.
2. You are damn fool.
You know it, your real friends know it. Embrace it. Don’t waste your time trying to hide it. Understanding that you are a fool is actually pretty freeing once you learn to stop cringing at the things you say and do.
3. You will make mistakes.
You will hurt others. You will break things. You will break yourself. Learn to say sorry. And learn to accept apologies too while you’re at it. It’s easy to let the shame of a mistake drive you into hiding, but it’s far more interesting and helpful to acknowledge a mistake and move forward. Mistakes are actually quite wonderful when you have the right perspective. They give you an opportunity to be real, to check yourself and to empathise with others who you may have previously written off. Mistakes can also make space if your life for genuine relationships where previously you only had frenemies. A big mistakes can be an opportunity to reassess and take step closer to the right move.
4. You’re kind of not that big a deal.
Yeah, nobody really cares about how amazing you are. Be cool, be kind. Introduce yourself with a handshake and a smile. Ask people questions about themselves once in a while. Practise good manners. Make your mum proud.
5. You could always laugh about it.
Have you ever had a moment where you’re walking around the city in your sophisticated new work dress, when the Charming Young man standing behind you on the escalator taps you on the shoulder and says, “Um, your skirt’s tucked in at the back.” And when you put your hand on your butt you realise that indeed half your skirt is tucked INTO your knickers. And then the lady behind the charming young man chimes in with, “yeah it’s really in there!” (Hypothetically speaking of course…) In situations like these you wish you could be cool, you wish you could have some witty comeback, but the best, yes the very best you can do is laugh. (Especially as you wonder how long it’s been like that for…)
Sometimes it seems like everything is out to get us, but what if all these awful things, the awkward moments, the huge mistakes, the humiliation are just wonderful opportunities to be humbled and recapture the wonder of things that are not you or me!
