I got an e-mail yesterday and the first words were, “You’re special!”  I stopped! Me, special? You’ve got to be kidding! I’m not special, I’m just ordinary. Then I stopped again, listening to my own self-talk.  I.M. Heart would tell me that I am special. Everyone else is also special, each in our own way.  However, many of us don’t believe there is anything about us that is distinctive, exceptional, extraordinary or even wonderfully common like everyone else. Maybe, my dear friends, it’s time for all of us to wake up and know that we are indeed special just because we are ourselves!

I realized that  even though I hear the words, “you’re special, I love you, you’re a hoot, you’re silly Mom, or we really appreciate all you do for us,” some part of me does not really believe that I am indeed special.  I sit here in tears as I write this for the loss of valuing myself. As with many of you, this has been a lifelong struggle.  I am a work in process.

The big question is: Why do we believe that big, barking dog voice that tells us that we are stupid, fat, or ugly? It howls day and night, lying to us about our value and worth and because the voice is so loud, we think it tells us the truth.  It has barked at us all our life and it’s time to tell this dog that we know it has lied. Enough! Stop!  We can say this, but just telling it to stop is not the simple answer.  The issue is that no matter what we have accomplished, how we love, or what we know or do — for many of us it is still not enough.  We so not see ourselves as special!

So, when the dog starts barking loudly, do tell it to stop. Then look at what you have done in the last few minutes. Quietly, lovingly and firmly tell yourself.  “I Am Heart and I am special.”  I’m giving myself credit for some simple ordinary or extraordinary action or behavior. Instead of listening to the dog, I’m going to listen to that quiet whisper of a voice, that gently nudge, that blink of awareness that says,” I am good. I am the best. I am worthy. I am loving and lovable. I am special – just as I am right now.”  This is a knowingness emerging in all of us. Let’s nurture it and let it grow.  It’s the truth. It’s time to live the truth, not the lie.

I challenge you – and it is also a challenge for me!  In the next week, each day begin to practice being special.  Wake up in the morning knowing that you are special!  As you go through the day, write down or tell yourself some way in which you are special. At the end of the day, review the ways in which you were special today. Say a prayer of gratitude and thanks for being so special. It may feel strange or uncomfortable, and that is the reason to keep doing it. Growing can feel strange because we are moving out of the known into the unknown.  However, special is how God sees each and every one of us. Noticing and honoring our special loving energy connects us to that universal love of God.  Much love from I.M. Heart!