The International Day of the Girl Child was this past weekend and I saw something posted that really made me pause. It mentioned that at age 15 Joan of Arc led a French army in a victory battle, Anne Frank had written a diary about being a Jewish girl hiding in a city occupied by the Nazis that went on to become a world-renowned book, Greta Thunberg inspired a global movement to stop climate change, and Malala was shot for speaking out in support of girls’ education and has since graduated from Oxford and won the Nobel Peace Prize. These girls changed the world.
At age 15.
Many of us wonder how we can use our gift. We may focus on the fact that it’s not the right time, things aren’t perfect, we have questions, we don’t have answers, we are stuck doing something we’ve already started, and we don’t know where to begin.
But we are exchanging a day in our lives for today. And are we happy with the transaction?
Circumstances will never be ideal. The path will not be clear and easy. But what is within our reach is our own personal, authentic truth. If we can close out the noise and listen to that quiet voice inside that knows us so well.
What is it saying? What is the one thing we will always regret if it’s never done? And what can we do right now to address it? Learn something new? Send the email? Find a mentor? Volunteer at a passion project? Ask for the promotion? Join the committee? Register for the course? Train for the run?
The climb to the highest mountain often begins alone, in fear, with that one small step.
Are we willing to start walking?